Persona 4 Ultimax Arena
by MagnusRagnar
Summary: After the end of the Inaba Serial Murder case, both Roy Fortune and Rusei Norimoto thought they'd be able to enjoy a normal life again for a while. Alas, another wild card is dealt to them by fate when an airplane is hijacked and a few members of the Investigation Team go missing... Sequel to Persona 4: Golden Moon and P3: A Fool Named Fortune Reshuffled. Spoilers for both within.
1. The Arena

A phone ringing drew the attention of a young man with red hair, looking at it in curioisity as he picks it up.

"Agent Seven reporting." he said, eyes glancing in the direction of his girlfriend as she answered her own phone.

 _["We have an emergency situation. You and Five are being called in."]_

"Standard regs on this?"

 _["No. Sub-protocal 'Lucky Seven' is in effect."]_

The redhead's eyebrow arched. "That's... concerning. Alright, where's the meeting point?"

 _["Agent Six is enroute to your location with transport. She'll brief you on the details."]_

"Copy that. Seven out." he said, setting down his phone with a sigh. "So much for a peaceful Golden Week..."

"The two of us and Metis..." noted the blonde, setting aside her own phone.

"Well if it warrents an emergency call to two members on vacation, it's gotta be a big deal." said the redhead. "C'mon, let's get the ol' uniform on."

* * *

The next half hour was tense for the duo, as their associate explained the situation. An airplane hijacking took place, and something related to their operation was in the comandeered aircraft. A Special Assault Team had taken up positions at the airport, but the sensitivity of the situation along with an emergency alert from Agent One necessitated they intervien directly.

Agent Seven felt odd, stepping out of a black car while wearing a black trench coat and sunglasses. He kept a relaxed, almost personable aura about himself despite the more no-nonsense looks of the majority of his coworkers, save Agents Five and Six. He remained silent as the group of roughly twelve Shadow Operative agents entered the airport, making their way to the SAT squad's location.

"Who're you?" asked the SAT Captain, suspicion in his voice.

"For the next half hour, we're in command of this scene." stated one of the other agents.

"You didn't answer the question." noted the captain. "Who's responsible for this?"

Seven rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses, stepping forward.

"We're not trying to step on toes here." he said, his tone calm and cool. "But sadly, we're not at liberty to disclose who we work for."

The captain sized him up. "...You're the one in charge?"

"No, that would be her." he said, indicating Agent five to his left. "I'm her second."

"Are you shitting me?"

"There is no time to waste quarreling." stated Five, removing her sunglasses. "There are lives at stake, so action is best."

The captain chewed his lip for a moment. "So you expect me to hand over control of the scene to you without even telling me who the hell you are?"

Seven let out a sigh, taking off his own sunglasses. "Man, we literally don't have time for this. Just please, for the love of all things good in the world, work WITH us, not get snippy."

"...Alright." sighed the captain, his eyes drifting between the two agents who'd been speaking. "But you get exactly thirty minutes, and not a second more."

Five nodded. "Understood." she turned her head. "First, we need a staircar. Aproximately how close to the plane is it possible to get one while staying in their blindspots?"

One of the other agents seems to do some quiet, mental math. "...Without being noticed, that would be ten meters from it."

"That will be more than enough."

The SAT captain and his men watch in confusion as a roofless staircar is slowly moved into postion, a girl with black hair driving it. Once it reaches its limit, she exits. The captain pulls out a set of binoculars, trying to watch what the girl, the blonde, and the redhead are doing as they gather near the base of the staircar.

"Are we ready to begin?" she asks, removing her own sunglasses.

Five nodded. "Yes. On my mark..."

The dark haired girl crounches, looking ready to sprint at a moment's notice.

"...Mark!"

The girl rushes forward, darting up the staircar and leaping from the top of it. She easily clears the distance, landing atop the plane as if nothing happened. She looks around, as if scanning the exterior of the plane before producing a gray knife from her coat. With a deft motion, she slides off the top of the aircraft and jams the knife into the jamb of the front hatch and dangles from it. Using her free hand, she opens the hatch, then nimbly jumps into the vehicle. Within seconds, both the blonde and the redhead rush up the staircar and leap into the open hatch, leaving the watching SAT captain in awe.

* * *

The pilot's body tensed as he saw a warning light come on in the cockpit. It blinked several times, alerting both the pilot and the hijacker pointing a gun at him that the hatch is open. As he feels the gun move away from his head, a soft thud draws his attention; the hijacker is unconscious on the ground, and a woman with dark hair and red eyes is leaning over him. She presses a finger to her lips to silence him, two more people appearing behind her. One, a blonde, produces a set of handcuffs and passes them to the dark haired girl, who quickly restrains the first hijacker. The blonde and redhead then slip further into the plane, making their way to the closed curtain that divides first class and economy class.

The two of them peek through, each spotting another hijacker in each of the aisles. From behind, their companion closes in then peeks through as well. She nods at them both, which in turn causes the redhead to smirk. He stands up, then quickly reaches through the curtain and yanks the nearest hijacker through it, depositing him directly into the hands of his two associates before scurrying to the other side and repeating ths process, though this time he strikes the hijacker across the face to knock them out. He steps through the curtain once both hijackers are handcuffed.

"Okay folks, keep it calm!" he said, a casual tone to his voice as he stepped into economy class. "Came to rescue you, but stay in your seats till we-"

A scream erupts as a man rises from his seat, pressing a gun to Agent Seven's head. He merely lets out a sigh in response.

"Smart move, but don't you know?" he quipped, quickly jabbing his elbow into the man's abdominal region. "Crime's illegal, fucko."

The hijacker wheezes in pain, his gun slipping from his hand. Another man rises on the other side of the plane, only to find himself suddenly beset by a blonde who rushed in from the curtain, wrenching the gun from his hand and throwing him to the ground.

"Nice timing." remarked Seven, turning his attention to the rest of the passengers. "Anyone else want to share with the rest of the class?"

A silence followed.

"Good. Six, mind giving the all clear?"

"Got it!" called out the dark haired girl, hurrying to the front of the plane.

The redhead turned back towards the passengers, slowly making his way towards one in particular. Her hair stood out, after all.

"I leave you alone for what, ten minutes and you get on a plane that gets hijacked?" quipped the agent. "For shame..."

The woman sighs. "I'll be honest, I was expecting Metis alone, not you and Aigis as well..."

"Hey, someone thought it was worth dragging us in." remarked the redheaded man. "And it's not a bad workout to start my day, all things considered."

Another sigh. "Roy, I hardly know what to do with you sometimes..."

He grinned. "And yet you asked me to join this little venture, Mitsuru-san."

* * *

The passengers slowly began to make their way out of the plane, retrieving their belongings as the hijackers were taken into police custody. The assembled operatives in black gather off to one side, Mitsuru's carry on luggage beside them.

"So no demands out of these clowns?" asked Roy. "Would've thought they were after Senpai directly with how urgent everything sounded when Metis filled us in..."

"I suspect some of the directors thought the same and panicked, leading to them calling in you and my sister." remarked Metis, eyes on a small list that Mitsuru had given her. "...None of her carry on baggage is missing, either."

Aigis hummed. "...Mitsuru-san, why were you on this flight at all?"

"I..." the redhead's eyes widened. "Oh no... Check the rest of the luggage! They may have been after cargo, not a passenger!"

The blonde nodded, quickly radioing to have the luggage transport routes secured.

"I thought you were on vacation as well, the hell kind of souvenir you bring back?"

Mitusur hesitated for a moment before answering Roy's question. "...My trip to Kagoshima was partly vacation, but also oversee the transport of cargo from Ergo Research to Yakushima."

Metis frowned at the name. "That place, huh..."

"...Hmm. I'm guessing it doesn't have a good rep."

Aigis shook her head. "No. It's..." she paused, putting her hand on her earpiece. "Five speaking... I see. Understood." she sighed. "It would seem that one of the boxes scheduled for transport has gone missing."

"I see... I thought as much." noted Mitsuru with a sigh. "We have to get it back. The rest of the team can finish up here, I'll be needing the three of you to come with me."

Roy grinned. "That mean you're coming off vacation and taking charge, Agent One?"

"Well Roy, if you're here, doesn't that also mean 'Lucky Seven' is in effect?"

His expression flattened. "...And here I'd tried to pass the buck on that. Looks like we both get to cut vacation short then."

"Regardless, I feel like you three will have something of a personal stake in this incident, official Shadow Operatives mission or not."

The trio exchanged a confused look, though Metis was the one who voiced it.

"What do you mean?"

"The cargo I was transporting to Yakushima was at my mother's request." stated the Kirijo heiress. "The Fifth Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon... Unit name 'Labrys'."

* * *

Following some few final discussions with the rest of the Shadow Operative agents, and also a short meeting between Mitsuru and one Naoto Shirogane, and the ranked agents headed to get to work on their search. The immediate rest of the day was compiling information and tracking the thief's vehicle, while the next was a meeting about what course of action to take. Both Metis and Aigis were somewhat hesitant, as there was a very real possibility of having to destroy their sister unit. Roy, however, was confident they could handle it... more so once they discovered the abducted unit was heading towards Inaba, even if he'd prefer to not get the Investigation Team wrapped up in what happened.

In regards to said team, their fearless leader was finalizing some plans of his own for Golden Week. It was a great deal easier to coordinate things since his family moved to Inaba, on account of his mother expecting a third child. His only disappointment was that Naoto had been called away for an investigation, though he couldn't hold it against her as it had sounded rather important. Of course Rusei had to remind Teddie to behave himself at one point, but that aside the only holes in the plans were a distinct lack of word back from Rise and Kanji. It wasn't the worst thing, they both could get easily distracted at times. That said, the evening of May Second held a surprise in store for the Persona Users of Inaba...

"...Rain got you jumpy?"

Rusei looked over at his father and sheepishly nodded. "I suspect it will for quite some time..."

"I don't blame you, with everything that happened." remarked Hayate Norimoto, glancing at the clock. "...Think Ryotaro's still awake?"

The Wild Card shrugged. "Probably not. Nanako said she was going to make sure he went to bed."

"Ha!"

"When do you think Yoshiro will have a chance to visit?"

"He was making plans for summer break to swing by. Apparently he's intent on following through with that request you passed along from Nanako about having another 'big bro'." chuckled Hayate.

Rusei laughed, his eyes drawn back to the blank TV in the living room. It was nearly midnight.

"...Well, if you wanna put yourself at ease, go right ahead." hummed the elder Norimoto. "Your old man needs some rest..."

"I won't be up much longer. Goodnight, dad."

Hayate yawned, heading for the stairs.

 _["Rivals..."]_

He stopped in his tracks, his head whirling around towards the TV. It had been turned off not five minutes ago.

 _["They are..."]_ Large, red words appeared on the television set. _["Friends, yet powerful foes!"]_

Rusei and Hayate stared at the screen, as if in a trance as it suddenly transitioned to a close up shot of six people, a bright yellow line cutting diagonally across the center of the screen. Hayate only recognized one immediately, but Rusei knew them all.

Himself, and the Investigation Team sans Teddie and Rise.

 _["The desperate fighting program amonst high school students!"]_ Lightning arced across the image on screen, the word 'Battle' sliding into frame for a moment before it suddenly transitioned to a dimly lit stadium. _["A new legend is about to start!"]_

Music began to play, curtains on the screen falling away to reveal a crowded arena around a boxing ring connected to a stage. A lone figure stood in the center of the ring... and it was one Rusei also recognized. It was Teddie, carrying a gold topped cane and wearing a hat and cape with a cigar in his mouth.

 _["May the manliest of all men!"]_ The bear made a flourish to act as another scene transition. _["Come on DOWN!"]_

A man who clearly was the proper 'announcer' for this event stood with a microphone in hand, sunglasses hiding his eyes.

 _["Nobody touches his precious Nanako!"]_ The man gestured to a spotlight, a profile appearing on screen as a familiar face was illuminated on the screen. _["The Sister-Complex Iron Ronin; Rusei Norimoto!"]_

 _["I'll cut you down if you get in my way."]_

Rusei's face contorted in confusion. That was his voice, but... he'd never said that phrase before.

 _["Wage slave in the boonies by day, hero by night!"]_ The announcer turned, another spotlight taking the camera's focus. _["Captain Ressentiment; Yosuke Hanamura!"]_

 _["Everything that bores me has gotta go!"]_ exclaimed Yosuke, his own 'profile' appearing on the screen around him.

"What in the hell...?"

 _["A spunky dragon with deadly legs!"]_ Another shift of focus. _["The Carnivore Who's Discarded Womanhood; Chie Satonaka!"]_

 _["You need to eat more meat!"]_

The announcer held one hand close to his chest for a moment as the camera panned to another spotlight behind him. _["Please escort me to the ring, my prince!"]_ He dramatically posed as the girl stepped into the light. _["The Unconquerable Snow Black; Yukiko Amagi!"]_

 _["I'll finish you in one strike!"]_

 _["Blooming roses and bulging muscles!"]_ The announcer over animatedly 'flexed' with one arm as he held his microphone, turning towards yet another spotlight. _["The Bloodcurdling Beefcake Emperor; Kanji Tatsumi!"]_

The Kanji on the screen flicked a hand through his hair. _["Deep in the realms of romance!"]_

-That's not how Kanji talks!- Rusei thought. -That's... more like his Shadow...!-

 _["The body of a child – the brain of a genius!"]_ Another pan of the camera, one last spotlight appearing behind the announcer who pantomimed holding a gun to his head. _["The Two-Thousand IQ Killjoy Detective; Naoto Shirogane!"]_

 _["Is this an army of idiots...?"]_

"Naoto is many things, but she is NOT a killjoy!" Rusei near-shouted, heedless of the fact there was no way the Midnight Channel would respond to him.

 _["FIGHT – and survive, towards the one throne waiting at the end!"]_ Images of the 'contestants' against a backdrop of flames crossed the camera, till at last settling upon Teddie atop a podium. _["The P-1 Grand Prix where fierce fights will be fought!"]_ A banner for the 'Grand Prix' covered the screen. _["THE BATTLE BEGINS TONIGHT!"]_

The screen quickly went blank, the only sound now the rainfall outside. Rusei and his father stared at the TV in silence before the latter found his voice.

"...Was that... the Midnight Channel...?" asked Hayate, looking at his son. "But... I thought you said it stopped coming on..."

"It did..." replied the Wild Card, the demeaning epitaphs given to him and his friends ringing in his mind in a sour tone. "...Something exceptionally wrong is going on here..." He quickly pulled out his phone, dialing one of the most recent numbers in his call history.

 _["D-Dude, please tell me I'm just imagining what I just saw...!"]_ Yosuke exclaimed the moment he answered his phone. _["I really wanna know I'm just having a bad dream...!"]_

"Unfortunately, Yosuke... No. I saw that as well..." he glanced over at his father. "...And so did my dad."

 _["...Damn it. We solved the case! There shouldn't be anything left! We had a death match with a GOD for crying out loud!"]_ griped the brunet. _["And it's Golden Week! This is so dumb!"]_

Hayate, for his part, just shook his head. "Rusei, you... just do your thing, it is too late at night for crazy for me... G'night..."

"Goodnight..." the Wild Card returned his attention to his phone as his father headed upstairs. "Seems our plans will be slightly delayed."

 _["...Man, now I'm really worried. I figured he'd turn up by now, but... I haven't seen Teddie since around lunchtime today."]_

Rusei bit his lip. "...And we haven't heard from Rise or Kanji for a whole day at this point, Naoto's on a case, and Roy and Aigis are, well..."

 _["Yeah, they've got their own stuff to deal with... Damn it."]_

"We'll meet up at the food court and check things out on the other side from there. Get some rest, I have a feeling this is going to be a long day..."

 _["You and me both, man..."]_

Rusei sighed to himself as he hung up the phone, rising from his seat and heading up to his bedroom.

* * *

The third of May would prove to be exceptionally busy for both the Investigation Team and the Shadow Operatives. While the former gathered to look into the strange return of the Midnight Channel, the latter set about making their way to Inaba in search of Labrys, though... not in a way a few of them would define as 'undercover'.

"I have to ask, senpai." began Roy, leaning back in his seat in the limo. "What DID you tell the guys when you asked them to get us a car for this?"

The redhead rubbed her temple. "To give us a car 'with enough space'..."

"...Okay. I can forgive them for going the limo route, then." he remarked, peering out a window. "...Man, did not think I'd be back here on the clock."

"Right... you and Aigis were investigating that serial murder."

He nodded at Metis' remark. "Yeah... Good thing too, means we don't have to dig quite as deep to know what happened out here... but also poses another problem." Roy turned his head back to his companions. "Labrys could've been dumped into the other side, meaning we might actually need to call in Norimoto's crew to help us find her. Teddie and Kujikawa are pros at tracking people on that side."

"I would prefer to avoid involving them if at all possible..." noted Mitsuru, crossing her arms. "Though I certainly hope Detective Kurosawa has some additional information for us..."

"We did leave fairly soon after Adachi-san was apprehended..." Aigis admitted.

"Hey, Roy needed a vacation after all..." remarked another person in the car, running his hand through his black hair. "I'm honestly still amazed you actually agreed to come along."

Roy looked Ryoji Mochizuki dead in the eye. "Listen. I'm not about to let some assholes use my girlfriend's sister as a rock 'em, sock 'em robot or whatever the hell they plan on doing with her. And are you sure you should even BE here? I don't wanna know what Minoru will do to your ass if he finds you in his turf..."

"Don't worry, I'm not here to pick a fight. I'll back down from that scuffle, no question..." remarked the demigod. "Looks like a nice place, though."

"It certainly has its charms..." noted Aigis, her attention shifting to Mitsuru. "Akihiko-san got the message, yes?"

"Correct. It was a bit short notice for him, so he apologized for his attire in advance..." replied the heiress. "I'm not certain why, though..."

Ryoji shrugged. "Probably means he's gonna show up in his gym clothes or something, don't stress it."

"The transmitter on the target vehicle isn't far from our meeting point with Detective Kurosawa." noted the last passenger, her eyes focused on the screen in front of her. "We should be able to park nearby and investigate while we wait for him."

"Good to know, Fuuka."

"My only question is how we're all gonna fit on the ride home..." Roy commented dryly. "If we're picking up Akihiko and, presumably, bringing Labrys with us on the way out, it's gonna be crowded even in this..." he produced a card from his vest pocket. "And I don't think these can hold an inactive Anti-Shadow Unit, nor do I wanna find out what'd happen if we tried..."

Mitsuru sighed. "It shouldn't have to come to that, Roy."

"Here's hoping, senpai..."

* * *

"So Naoto's safe, and our favorite Dynamic Duo is doing some stuff with their friends..." remarked Yosuke, appraising the situation as he, Rusei, Yukiko, and Chie sat at a table in the Junes Food Court. "That's a relief..."

Rusei nodded in agreement. "Yes, but this is quite an abnormal situation... this was the first time I can think of that a large number of people were on the Midnight Channel, much less people who weren't abducted..."

"And why us!? And what was up with those..." Chie scowled. "...Insulting descriptions!?"

"Rather ill fitting at that, though I find it interesting neither Teddie nor Rise received one, and yet Naoto did." noted Rusei. "The fact Teddie was on at all, even in a ridiculous outfit I'm certain he doesn't actually have, was something of a surprise... it seemed like he was running the show, so to speak."

Yukiko hummed crossing her arms. "...It's really suspicious he disappeared before that happened, but..." she shook her head. "There's no way he'd pull a prank like this. He'd never give us titles like those... especially not Rusei-kun."

"Yeah, this seems super fishy." Chie stated. "But how are we gonna get back out once we go in?"

"Got that covered!" said Yosuke, a grin on his face. "I made sure Teddie kept the exit open on that side for us, so as long as we can retrace our steps, we can get back out. Should be a lot easier without the fog, too. Besides... TV sets are all just giant pitfalls for us. We take a wrong step while half asleep, and we could fall right in..."

The brunette martial artist scoffed. "Who'd be that clumsy?"

"Best to be prepared just in case. Regardless, we have another case on our hands." said Rusei, drawing everyone's attention. "So let's investigate."

* * *

Roy rolled down the window, a half-hearted smirk on his face. "This thing stands out way too much, don't it?"

Kurosawa nodded quietly. "It really does."

"Don't worry, I'm gonna have a long talk with the guy running our transportation once this is over." remarked the redhead, opening the door. "Hop in, may as well have a seat while we chat."

Roy scooted over, letting the detective slip into the limo and close the door. His gaze lingered on Metis for a moment, then he focused on Mitsuru.

"Long time no see." he remarked. "Look like you've been doing well... present circumstance aside, at least."

"Quite. Were you able to find out anything?"

Kurosawa shook his head. "Not anything you likely don't already know, given how your friend there-" he gestured to Roy. "-Is mentioned in some of the reports. Only things you might not have details on mostly pertains to the suspect and his confession, and that doesn't seem like it'd be a big help for you guys."

"Not really, no..." agreed Ryoji with a sigh, glancing out the window. "...Roy. You know any conditions about hopping through a TV?"

"They're point to point connections." replied the redhead. "The one we got shown by the civilian contact out here was in the electronics department of the local Junes, and it's still the only one I know where it leads to. Hopping through any other could land us who knows where, meaning we'd need a rescue."

The detective hummed. "At least that's a limitation that makes sense... otherwise just moving a TV up a set of stairs could throw you off course."

"Indeed. And thank you for taking the time to look into things, Kurosawa-san."

"No problem. You guys have done right by me, no harm in lending a hand." he said, opening the door. "I should get back to my own business, anyways. Good luck."

As the door closed, Mitsuru turned her attention to Ryoji.

"What brought up the subject about TV conditions?" she asked.

The dark haired man gestured towards the window next to him – Not far away was a large amount of discarded electronics, most notable being a stack of television sets.

"A limo would stand out pulling up at a store like Junes, as would people like us just wandering into electronics and just disappearing." noted the demigod. "As long as we have a chance to get out fine, we could just jump in from here."

"...On one hand Ryoji, that's a terrible idea." said Roy. "On the other... it's also the one that involves a significantly smaller amount of gawkers." He turned towards Fuuka. "You'll be staying on this side, right?"

She nodded. "Yes. I'll be honest, I've been sensing something from those TVs for a while now..."

"Juno's only gotten better at keeping an eye on things over the past few years..." commented Ryoji, opening the door next to him. "But no time like the present. I'll hang back in case you guys need the cavalry. Sound fair, Mitsuru?"

"Quite." said the redhead, exiting the vehicle with Metis, Aigis, and Roy soon to follow. "Yamagishi, keep your presence as concealed as possible while monitoring us as best you can."

"You all have transceivers, right?"

Roy nodded. "Yeah. Ear pieces as well, in case we need 'em."

"Good luck in there!" said Ryoji as his friend shut the door.

The four Persona Users strode over to the stack of television sets, Metis stepping closer to the largest one and running her fingers along the screen. To her surprise, the glass held no more surface tension than water, ripples of light crossing its surface as her hand slipped in up to the wrist.

"That's..."

"Trippy, right?" asked Roy, stepping up beside Metis. "Trust me, going through feels even weirder."

She shook her head. "No... I sense something..." she looked over her shoulder. "I'm not positive because it's my first encounter with this, but I'm getting a reading of another personality module...!"

"So then... Labrys is actually on the other side...?"

"Sounds like fun."

Roy turned his head, giving the approaching boxer an odd look. "...The hell kind of gym workout has you wandering around in a tattered red cape?"

"I lost a bet with Hamuko, okay?" griped Akihiko. "And who are you to talk about dressing weird, you still look like you walked out of Las Vegas!"

"...I thought I had a good gauge of some of Arisato's quirks, but even when she's not here, she manages to surprise me..." Mitsuru sighed, shaking her head.

Aigis laughed. "It's part of her charm."

"...Just wait here a moment. I'm going to have them bring the car closer."

Metis watched her walk away, then turned towards her sister and Roy.

"So what was the situation on the other side last time you two were there?"

"Improved, but not great." replied Roy. "Still pretty foggy. Last I heard from Norimoto when I helped his folks move into town, it's clear as day over there since they had their showdown with Izanami."

Akihiko whistled. "They took on a god?"

"By Rusei-san's testimony, they fought two divine aspects while we were directly assisting them – Kunino-saigiri, which had been hidden within Taro Namatame, and Ameno-saigiri, the 'ruler of fog' that had attached itself to Toru Adachi." Aigis answered. "They fought another, Kusumi-no-Okami, sometime in February, and their battle with the creator of the Midnight Channel, Izanami, took place on the eve of the final day of Rusei-san's originally intended stay in Inaba."

"After they slapped the stupid out of her, apparently the fog lifted on that side." added Roy, looking at the TV. "We still gotta be careful, since there's no telling where we're gonna end up. I know of a vaguely safe place for us to wait out a rescue by Norimoto's team, but well..." he turned towards Akihiko. "...Hope you like blackjack."

Akihiko let out a sigh. "And to think, you're our expert on that other world..."

"The collective unconscious really, but that's splitting hairs." said the redhead, watching as the Limo pulled around near where they were standing and Mitsuru stepped out. "All set?"

She nodded as she approached. "Yes. Do you have any advice for handling the other side?"

"Treat it like Tartarus, but less enclosed." stated Roy, the usual mirth in his tone absent. "Unless we come across a 'dungeon' as the Investigation Team coined them, there's not really any place to hide from Shadows over there. Supposedly they're less pervasive after everything the Team got up to after Aigis and I left town, but don't let your guard down."

Akihiko nodded. "One wrong move, and we could be devastated."

"Pretty much." said Roy, pulling out a pair of glasses and slipping them on. "It's also apparently not foggy on that side anymore, but just in case it is, you three should stick close to me and Aigis. These specs Teddie made for us negates a lot of the obstruction the fog causes, but we didn't really have the time to get spares out of the fuzzball."

"Noted." said Mitsuru, turning her attention towards the rest of the group. "Ready?"

They all nodded, Metis stepping forward first to enter the TV, the rest of the Shadow Operatives right behind her.

* * *

Despite his experience with the sensation of entering the TV World, there was still something... off about this particular time to Roy. He couldn't quite pick up on what it was, at least not until he suddenly found himself falling about ten feet straight down into a large room. He coughed, pushing himself to his feet.

"Ow... You guys okay?"

No one replied.

"Guys?" Roy asked, looking around the room. It was a gymnasium... a good portion of it blocked off by an absurd number of folding chairs haphazardly stacked and tied together with what, at first glance, seemed like Police tape. In reality, the yellow streamers all read 'P-1 Grand Prix'.

"What in the..." his eyes eventually settled on a banner on the gymnasium's stage, the Yasogami High emblem emblazoned upon it. "...Hell? We came in through that TV..." he paused, noting he could still feel the faint 'pull' that he knew would lead him to the confines of his own mind. "...Yeah. This is the other side, alright..."

Before the redhead can attempt to contact his companions via their transceivers, a TV monitor hanging from the ceiling slowly descends and switches on.

 _["Hmm? Who's this scary guy?"]_

"...Teddie, how hard did you hit your head?" Roy asked, wary of the image of the bear on the screen. He didn't quite think the M. Bison wanna be look suited the fuzzball.

 _["H-How unexpected! I'll have to-"]_ The image flickered with static. _["Have to- H-have have have have-"]_

The screen went blank. After a few moments, the monitor turned back on, but Teddie's expression was... vastly different. The burning golden eyes in particular immediately put Roy on guard.

 _["Case zero-six: Unintended intruder."]_ stated 'Teddie', glaring at the redhead in annoyance. _["Entering elimination process."]_

The screen went blank again, then rose back towards the ceiling.

"Oh, this should be fun..." sighed Roy, shaking his head. A heavy thud drew his attention, someone groaning in annoyance as they pushed themselves to their feet. Once they stood, the redhead recognized them.

"...Tatsumi?"

Kanji rubbed his head. "Eh? Big Red, when the hell'd you get here?"

"I... could ask you the same question!" Roy replied, taking a few steps towards him. "You wouldn't happen to know why there's a copy of your high school's gym here, would you?"

The bleach blond froze, his eyes narrowing. "...What'd you just say?"

"...I asked if you knew why your gym is in the Collective Unconscious?"

"That's a load of bullshit!" Kanji bellowed angrily.

"What? How is it bullshit!?"

Kanji growled in anger, balling his hands into fists. "Shut your damn mouth, asshole! What the hell is wrong with you!?"

Roy narrowed his eyes. "...Cheese weasels have stolen my bacon grease"

"Rusei ain't like that, and you know it!"

"Hmm. I'm saying things, and you're hearing something else." remarked the Wild Card. "My bullshit senses are tingling."

"WHAT'D YOU JUST SAY ABOUT MY MOM, YOU BASTARD!?" Kanji roared, pure rage in his eyes.

Roy's expression fell. "Uh oh..."

"OH YEAH!?" asked the bleach blond, marching over to the stack of chairs nearby and yanking out out. "See who's laughing when I get done with you!"

"Kanji... Kanji, calm down." said the redhead, taking a few steps back. "Something is messing with you. Please don't pick this fight, I don't wanna do this..."

The younger persona user didn't seem to hear him, a ring of blue fire erupting around him.

"Go, Takejizaiten!"

Roy yelped in surprise, diving out of the way of the titanic persona's fist. This was his first time seeing this new form of Kanji's Persona, and he certainly wasn't liking the prospect of it aiming at him at all. Nor was he particularly happy to find out the massive entity was a distraction, as Kanji himself quickly grabbed Roy and proceeded to first fling the Wild Card over his shoulder, then throw the chair he was wielding right at the redhead. It smashed into Roy's back just before he hit the ground, almost knocking the wind out of him.

-Right, Kanji manhandled a fuckton of biker gang guys.- thought Roy as he scrambled to his feet. -Brawling him's a bad idea... He's probably scarier in a straight punch out than Aki or Shinji.-

He ducked under Kanji's furious haymaker, elbowing him in the ribs before shoving the younger persona user past him as he tried to get himself a bit of breathing room.

-Upside for me is I'm a hell of a lot faster than he is- Roy snapped his fingers, Kwaku Anansi erupting into existence to catch Takejizaiten's fist. -Especially on the draw with a Persona.-

Kanji rushed back into the fray, forcing Roy to block or dodge his punches and the chair while attempting to counter attack.

-Downside is I'm not about to Oni Smash someone getting bamboozled into fighting me, since that could probably mangle him!-

As their battle continued, Roy began to notice something else. While still powerful, Kanji's attacks were easier to predict than he felt they should be based on what he'd seen of the teen before. When he ended up in a raw contest of strength against Kanji, he realized why; The poor guy's eyes were half glazed over, like he hadn't slept in almost a day.

It took a bit of maneuvering on Roy's part, but he managed to turn the tables so to speak. Using Kanji's lethargy to his advantage, he was able to eventually knock him down hard enough without breaking something that the younger persona user didn't immediately rise from. A 'bell' of some sort sounded, the strange monitor lowering from the ceiling again. The gold-eyed bear was on the screen again.

 _["Intruders are Persona-users... Case 06 identified. Jailer of Erebus. Elimination unlikely.]_ noted 'Teddie', a look of disdain on his face. _["Due to this, intruders will be registered as valid targets."]_

The screen went blank before Roy could say anything. When it came back, 'Teddie' was seemingly back to normal, save for his ridiculous outfit.

 _["Woo hoo! You sure know how to throw down, pal!"]_ exclaimed the bear excitedly. _["If you're here to join in, I'm fine with that!"]_

"Cut the crap, Teddie knows me and my name." sighed the redhead, even if he doubted this 'Teddie' was capable of answering him.

 _["C'mon, I can't help it if you're not on the tournament roster! A talented and charming bear General Teddie may be, but even he has his limits!"]_

Roy's eyebrow arched curiously at the response. "Tournament?"

The General grinned. _["Caught your interest, did I? You wanna find out more, then come to the next arena! I'll be waiting for you there."]_

The screen went blank, retreating to the ceiling. Kanji let out a groan, finally rising to a sitting position.

"God damn..."

"Hey, you okay?" asked Roy, jogging over to the bleach blond and kneeling down. "I didn't leave any marks, did I...?"

Kanji shook his head, still looking angry. "Not... as many as I'm gonna...!"

"Wait, you can actually hear me now!? Dude, I didn't say anything about anyone!" the redhead stated quickly. "In fact, I said actual nonsense at one point and apparently you heard me talking shit somehow."

The fury faded into confusion. "Huh...?"

"I'm serious. I asked you what the hell's going on here, and you just started getting pissed!"

"Wait... but, you... said Rusei was a dumbass for hangin' around someone like me..."

Roy blinked. "...Are you kidding me? It took forever to even get him to ADMIT he wanted to have friends period, why'd I say he SHOULDN'T have any?"

"I dunno. Dreams are weird, man..."

"...This isn't a dream, Kanji. This is the TV World."

"Huh?"

The redhead reached out and roughly pinched Kanji's arm, earning a yelp from the teen.

"OW! Dude, what..." he paused, the realization dawning on him. "...That hurt. Hurt. Dreams don't hurt. I'm... awake..." he shook his head and yawned. "And tired as hell..."

"How'd you end up in here, then?" inquired Roy, helping Kanji stand up. "Sleepwalk into your living room?"

The bleach blond shook his head. "I... I dunno, man. I... was up late as hell workin' on some dolls, and..." another yawn. "...Shit, did I... fall into the new TV Ma got... when I came downstairs...?"

"Well, I'm not about to leave a guy just stuck here. C'mon, try and stick with me as long as you can stay awake." said Roy, starting towards the nearest gym exit. "Some old pals came with, and we have something resembling a plan to get out when we're done here."

"Oh yeah... Big Red, the hell're you doin' here? Though you..." Yet another yawn. "...Were on vacation."

"Emergency at work. Tracked the asshole behind it to Inaba, and it looks like they decided to ditch their victim in the TV World."

Kanji frowned, despite his grogginess. "That's fucked up, man-"

As the two of them started out the door, however, Kanji hit a wall. Not as in an actual gym wall, one that was completely invisible.

"-OW! The hell?" he tried to go through the door, only to find himself stuck like a very talented mime. "Hey, gimme a hand!"

Roy nodded, trying to pull Kanji out of the gym. Even with his prodigious strength, however, it wouldn't budge.

"Shit. Whatever's got you in there has you in good, Tatsumi." remarked the redhead. "Damn it... did that fake Teddie do this, too?"

"Huh? Fake Teddie?"

"Yeah, he's dressed like M. Bison from Street Fighter and apparently running a 'tournament'. It's making this weirder than it already is..." he sighed. "Shit. I really don't want to leave you here, but if you can't get out..." Roy scratched his neck. "...I dunno, grab a few chairs, lean against the invisible wall, and try to get some sleep? About all I can do without tearing up what could be the inside of someone's mind is come back for you when I have the chance..."

Kanji yawned again, grabbing a nearby folding chair and setting it up next to the door. "I appreciated it..." he sat down, leaning against the 'wall'. "I... ain't gonna be able to do a lot like this, anyway... 'm fightin' to keep my eyes open."

"Right. I'll keep the door propped open, that way if those walls go away the fall should wake you up."

A vague grumbling was Kanji's reply, shortly followed by a loud snore.

-...Damn, he's already out cold.- thought the redhead. -Maybe I should've made Mira actually come with me... I'd feel a hell of a lot better leaving him here if I could just drop her on his lap to keep an eye on him.-

"HEY!"

Roy whirled around, halfway into a combative stance when he saw an unfamiliar girl in a Yasogami High uniform walking towards him. She had long, silver hair in a high ponytail and bright red eyes. It reminded him of Metis immediately, but then Hamuko's eyes were similar as well.

"The heck you think ya doin'!?" she demanded, marching up to him with a glare. "And who the heck are ya? Part of all this racket?"

The redhead sized up the girl for a moment, then reached into his vest.

"No..." he answered, pulling out his Public Safety badge. "Roy Fortune, Public Safety Bureau. I'm here looking for a kidnapper."

Her eyes went wide at his statement.

"You're a cop!? Hey, you mind givin' me a hand, then?" she asked, a hopeful look in her eye. "If you don't already know, there's this crazy bear in a stupid costume runnin' wild around here!"

"Not at all... but I have good news and bad news for you about this uh... 'Tournament'. Before I tell you though, who are you? You obviously attend this high school..."

She smirked proudly. "Yasogami High's student council president!"

-...Not what I meant, but it'll do for now.- he though before speaking again. "Alright Prez, which news you want first; Good or bad?"

"I mean, this is already kinda bad, so..." she trailed off, looking away from Roy only to notice Kanji sleeping in the doorway. "The heck is he doin'!?"

"Yeah... that's part of the bad news. See... this isn't the actual Yasogami High. It's... well, it's a really detailed fake."

The silver haired girl turned back to him in confusion. "What? You gotta be pullin' my leg, officer..."

"Nah. I can prove it, too. Notice how Tatsumi there is kinda leaning on nothing as he's sleeping? Seems that 'crazy bear' running the show's got some tricks in that dumb hat of his. Tatsumi's stuck in the gym; can't get out through that door, and I'd get in a lot of trouble if I broke down a wall."

"What? There's no way..." said the president, walking over and pulling on one of Kanji's arms. Despite her efforts, he wouldn't come through... though at least he didn't wake up. "...Holy smokes, you ain't kiddin'..."

"Yeah. You want the simple version of where we are?"

She nodded, turning back towards Roy. "Yeah... cuz that kinda stuff ain't normal."

"Well, if I had to guess... this is the inside of your head. You got shoved into a place where people's thoughts and minds can create real, tangible locations in an instant." he snapped his fingers for emphasis. "Meaning one of two things to me. Either you're the kidnapping victim I'm trying to rescue, or you're someone else this psycho may have grabbed and stuffed into Psychic Voodoo Land."

"This... place is my head...?" she muttered, looking around. "But... I don't remember nobody grabbin' me or stuffin' me anywhere..."

"Victims of this kinda thing tend not to, sadly. I've seen it before – Five times, in fact."

The president faced Roy again. "Seriously!? Then how do we get outta here?"

"That's a problem to sort out once I've got cuffs on the criminal responsible, who I'm currently assuming is wearing that bear costume." stated the redhead. "Have you seen anyone in here besides me, Tatsumi, and the 'General' running the tournament?"

"A few, but I didn't get a good look at 'em. They looked like they were in a big hurry, though."

Roy nodded. "Alright, let's walk and talk. I'm not exactly familiar with this high school, so mind guiding me around, Miss President?"

"Nah, it sounds like I'm gonna need ya help if I wanna be able to get outta here when we're done..." she said, starting down the hallway.

"Cool. Four of my fellow Public Safety Officers came here with me, but we got separate when we jumped in after the kidnapper." stated Roy as he followed the president. "I'll have to let 'em know we need to grab Tatsumi on the way out once I find them..."

"You know that guy?"

Roy nodded. "Yeah. He was one of the ones who I'd seen get nabbed like you did. But well, he seems to have fallen back in by accident due to an all nighter..."

"How the heck do you fall back into a place like this!?"

"Easier than you think, but let's keep focused." said the redhead. "...Mind if I ask a question, though?"

"Nah, go ahead officer."

He tucked a hand into his pocket. "Does the name 'Kirijo' mean anything to you?"

The girl's head bobbed side to side as she seemed to ponder the question. "...Can't say it does. Rings a bell, like I heard it before, but nothin' else."

"Hmm. Makes it less likely you're the victim I was original on the trail off. You're walking around a bit too easily to have been someone who was in the hospital in a coma for ten years..."

Her head span around. "That guy kidnapped someone from a hospital!?"

"She finally woke up and was finally being released, and her two younger sisters were excited at the prospect of introducing themselves to her." he stated, his mind working quickly to twist his search for Labrys into something that a normal person would find believable. "Asshole abducted her as she was being escorted home by a friend of her family."

"That's all kinda messed up!" exclaimed the president, a scowl on her face. "I'm gonna give that guy a piece a my mind once you arrest him..."

"Once the cuffs are on, go for it. Asshole's probably got it coming, along with a lot of other things..."

* * *

 **Author Notes -** Well, here we are, folks! The start of the last of the 'Stacked Deck' series of Persona Fanfics that began with A Fool Named Fortune: Reshuffled and continued on through Golden Moon. And while yes, you all did get a peak at what Rusei's up to while this chaos train is starting, don't get too used to it. You probably won't be seeing a lot of him till later in the story, especially once it reaches the events of Ultimax. For now, you'll be getting what I'd be willing to call Roy's Story Mode for the first Persona 4 Arena game. Used Aigis' as something of a basis for the start, given Roy's ties to her, but don't expect that to carry on through the whole thing. I have plans, you see! Many plans, but only half of them are evil... At least for the events of Arena. Ultimax, though... HEH. That's gonna be a fun time.


	2. Missions for the Brilliant Executioner

Pre-Chapter Review Answer Corner GO!

 **Cody the Worldwalker** \- Oh don't you even worry my dude, Elizabeth is still in this story. It'll be fun to have her turn up again! :D

 **Delta XIII** \- I'm glad you asked, because I have names and descriptions of most of them! I'll list them in the Author Notes at the end of this chapter along with what their 'titles' would be, Rusei excluded from the titles because his was mentioned in the first chapter.

And now, on with the chapter!

* * *

"OW! Oh that's just great..."

The Council President turned around. "What's wrong?"

Roy put his hand on the invisible wall barring his path, leaning on it. "It seems there's more than just the one keeping Tatsumi on lockdown back in the gym."

"What the...?" the girl grabbed the redhead by the arm, tugging with all her might. "Ngh! Oh come on, how's that even fair!?"

"I can't help but notice they're not stopping you, though."

The girl paused, looking at where Roy's hand. "...Hey, yeah... but... Why's it lettin' me through, 'n not you?"

"Well. Given how places like this work, I have two theories. I'm not sure which is worse."

She let go of his arm. "How bad are they?"

"One is just that the Evil Bear is behind this to keep people on the 'rails' for his stupid tournament. The other..." Roy hesitated before answering. "Well, places like this often come with what amounts to an evil copy of the person it's tied to in it. If this place is yours... that means there's an Evil Student Council President forcing 'order' upon the 'intruders', those being me, my friends, and Tatsumi."

"Wait, so now there's an evil me, too!?"

The redhead smiled sympathetically. "Kinda? You really don't want to encounter it without backup. They tend to get... aggressive if their original starts arguing with them."

The silver haired girl shivered. "That's... worryin'."

"Mmhm. So what's this room here?" asked Roy, pointing to his left. "I can't help but notice this wall doesn't want me going past the door to it..."

"That's the Music Room..." she replied, looking over her shoulder. "...And there's another door to it just down the hall. I'll see if it's unlocked, you just cut through the room itself, 'kay?"

"Sounds like a plan."

Roy ducked into the Music Room as the girl scurried a little ways down the hall. Upon entering, a monitor in the room descended from the ceiling as the door suddenly slammed shut behind him. Within moments, the screen lit up and played what Roy would've otherwise thought was a normal advertisement for a fighting tournament in an anime.

The fact it had the faces of the grand majority of the Investigation Team on it did not inspire confidence in him.

"...Okay, what hell is this garbage?" he asked once the 'commercial' ended. "Ressentiment? That's not even how that word is spelled, let alone pronounced! What kinda hack writer you got on your payroll, fuzzball?"

The 'General' appeared on the screen, glaring at Roy.

 _["How rude! I wrote that myself, I'll have you know!"]_

"Oh so it's you who needs to get fired, gotcha." said the redhead, giving a thumbs up at the screen. "I'll be sure to do that right before I make a rug out of you."

 _["Threatening the host? How brazen!"]_

Roy sighed, shaking his head. "That implies I care about your tournament in the first place. The hell have you done with Labrys?"

 _["...Who?"]_ asked the bear, a cheeky grin on his face. _["Sorry, nobody by that name in my tournament!"]_

-Great, now he's more directly fucking with me. Wonderful.- thought Roy. "Mmhm. Sure. So I'm guessing this is the next 'arena' you mentioned?"

 _["Of course! Now to reveal your next opponent!"]_

A curtain pulled away from the corner, a familiar brunette tumbling out from behind it.

"Sheesh, that hurt..."

Roy shifted his stance slightly. "Hi, Satonaka."

She shook her head as she stood up, an angry look on her face. "What'd you just say to me!?"

"Hello."

"Oh yeah!?"

Another sigh. "Y'know Fuzzums, this would be a lot funnier if it wasn't just really frustrating. Like seriously, what the hell are you making them hear?"

General Teddie's eyes narrowed as he stared at Roy. _["...It's not working. Why isn't it working on you!? The other one keeps ignoring them, but you're just...!"]_

"Why isn't what working on me?"

 _["Ngh... Shut up and fight!"]_ snapped the bear before the screen went blank.

"HIYAH!"

Roy ducked quickly, diving to one side before leaping back to his feet with Kwaku Anansi right behind him. "Of all the times to have to finally cash in that one sparring match I owe you..."

Chie rapidly gave the redhead very few chances to counterattack. The sheer difference between them in physical strength was a point both were well aware of, but Chie's reflexes and reaction time were easily the best out of the Investigation Team with Rusei as the most likely one to rival them. Roy, however, had a great deal more experience... and, as the brunette quickly became aware of in the few moments she wasn't going all out on her offense, was exceptionally skilled at utilizing his Persona.

That said, Haraedo-no-Okami had a trick up its sleeve that Roy didn't know of until a golden aura surged up around Chie.

"Don't miss this heavenly glory!"

"The hell are-?"

Roy was cut off as Chie's assault resumed at a level he didn't think was possible for her. Faster, Stronger, and she bounced back from his blows far easier.

-God fucking damn, what the hell did these guys pick up after their Personas got this far!?- he thought as he sidestepped a kick, following with a left hook he picked up from sparring with Akihiko to counterattack. -This is on the level of Cerberus and Vaisravana!-

Even with her Dragon Hustle though, Chie was still eventually overpowered by Roy and knocked to the ground. The 'bell' rang out soon after, but this time the monitor didn't descend again, giving the redhead the chance to help his 'opponent' stand up.

"Sorry about that Satonaka, but you didn't exactly give me a reason to hold back." he apologized. "The hell did you even hear me say!?"

The brunette blinked in confusion. "Huh...?"

"Whatever goaded you into picking a fight with me. I only heard you reacting to it."

"Wait, so you... DIDN'T call me a flea-bitten homewrecker?"

Roy stared at her. "...Okay. What is this damn fake Teddie thinking!? He can't even spell resentment right or even think of creative insults? This thing's a hack!"

"Huh? Fake Teddie...?"

The redhead sighed. "Short version: Me and some of my old pals are on the trail of an asshole who abducted one of Aigis' sisters, and that trail led us here. So far I've had both you AND Tatsumi goaded into fighting me."

"Kanji's here!?"

"Yeah, his story was he pulled an all nighter, then stumbled into the TV his mom got recently. I had to leave him in the Gym because he couldn't stay awake, and the invisible walls in this place wouldn't let him out of there. Why are YOU in here?"

Chie fidgeted nervously before she hopped to her feat. "...The Midnight Channel was on last night."

"...Excuse me?"

"Yeah! It showed some stupid tournament add with a bunch of insulting titles for everyone!" she stated angrily. "Me, Yukiko, Yosuke, and Rusei all came in to investigate, especially because we hadn't heard from Rise-chan, Teddie, or Kanji in a while!"

Roy hummed. "...What about your Student Council President?"

"Huh? What about him?"

"...Don't you mean 'her'?"

Chie shook her head. "No, I mean 'him'. He was the one doing the announcing at those stupid pageants at last year's culture festival."

"...Then why is there a silver haired girl in here claiming to be the student council president for your high school?"

"Wait, what!?"

On that remark, one of the doors finally burst open, the girl in question tumbling through.

"Ow... Jeez, who had this thing locked up so tight!?" she griped as she picked herself up off the ground.

"...That's a good question." said Roy, sorting through possibilities in his mind. "But yeah, Satonaka, that's the girl I was talking about."

Chie took a few steps towards the 'president', looking her over and humming.

"...What's the matta?" asked the silver haired girl, taking a step back.

"...I've never seen you before." reported the brunette. "Like, ever. And there wasn't any talk of transfer students this year..."

The girl blinked. "What? But you got on part a' the Yasogami High uniform, same as me! I'm the Student Council President!"

Chie shook her head. "No... Kyoji Kasshu is the president this year."

"Wow, I do not envy that guy with all the jokes that must come his way because of that name..." Roy remarked, fighting back a laugh.

"Huh? But... I know I'm the president..." said the girl, one hand on her head as she started at Chie in confusion. "I wouldn't just make somethin' like that up...!"

The brunette frowned. "I mean... there's nothing you really gain from it, so I believe you on that part... but what's your name?"

"...My name...?"

Roy arched an eyebrow. "...That's a good question, and what I was hoping for when I asked who you were."

"...Name..." the silver haired girls arms dropped to her sides. "...What is... my name...?"

Chie looked over at Roy. "You said one of Aigis' sisters was kidnapped, right? Could this be her?"

"...Hey, Pres. Focus up for a second."

The girl seemed to snap out of the trance she was falling into, looking directly at the redhead. "Huh, what? What were we talkin' about...?"

"Don't worry about it, I just got a question for you real quick before we get back to, y'know. Pulling the plug on this damn tournament..." Roy began, shifting his stance slightly. "Does the name 'Labrys' mean anything to you?"

"...Labrys...?"

"Yeah. It's the name of the kidnapping victim I'm trying to resuce."

The silver haired girl stared at Roy, her expression turning vacant.

"...Hey, you okay-?"

Chie found her hand slapped away when she reached out for the girl, who quickly turned and bolted out the door.

"Whoa-! What the hell!? After her!" exclaimed the brunette persona user, only to slam straight into an invisible wall when she tried to get out through the door. "OW!"

"Oh don't tell me..." Roy sighed, striding towards the door. He had no issue walking through. "God damn it, now YOU'RE locked in!" he looked back at the other entrance. "...Hey, see if you can go out the other way and make it to the gym. You might not be able to go forward, but if you can head back the way I came to keep an eye on Tatsumi..."

Chie rubbed her nose, nodding. "Yeah... Damn it, this sucks!"

"Tell me about it. But hey, if it ever looks like those walls are down, I'll be expecting the cavalry to come bustin' in to help out."

She grinned. "You can count on it, Roy-san!"

 _{"Fortune!"}_

Roy yelped, nearly falling over before putting a hand on his earpiece. "Holy shit Mitsuru, don't scare me like that! I'm already jumpy at this point because of the Evil Knockoff of Fuzzums!"

 _{"I presume you've been having your own issues with this 'tournament' then."}_ remarked Mitsuru, just enough humor in her tone to lighten the mood.

"Yeah... Also, good news and bad news on my end! Which one you want first?"

There was a pause, then a sigh. _{"Start with the bad."}_

"Okay. Bad news is not only are some of the Investigation Team here, but I think I know where in the TV World we are right now."

"Uh... Roy?"

He held up a hand to Chie. "Sorry, one sec. Mitsuru's not as good at the psychic phone calls as Kujikawa's Persona is." Roy shifted his attention back to his earpiece. "I got Satonaka from the IT here with me right now, and Tatsumi's asleep in the gym right now because of a combination of an all nighter and tripping into the TV in his living room."

 _{"I see. Norimoto is currently at my location, and he reported he'd been forced into a confrontation with Akihiko in one of the first year classrooms. And where exactly do you think we are?"}_ inquired the Shadow Operative.

"Well, that actually brings me to the good news, so let Norimoto know because it might come up on his end at some point." answered Roy, glancing at Chie to see that her expression seemed to brighten at the mention of Rusei's name. "I'm pretty sure that, as strange as it seems, this is the confines of Labrys' mind. Primarily because I think I found her, but well... she kinda bolted like a minute before you called so I'm giving the short version."

The line was silent for a moment before Mitsuru began speaking again. _{"Are you certain of this?"}_

"About eighty percent sure right now. She currently looks like a normal girl in a Yasogami High student uniform, has silver hair up in a ponytail, and eyes about the same color as Metis. She bolted after I asked her if the name 'Labrys' was familiar to her. In fact, she started acting weird after Satonaka noted that her claim of being Student Council President was false since the actual one for Yasogami is a dude and asked what her name was."

 _{"...I see. It could be related to the special equipment she was fitted with, but there were no details as to what the capabilities of said equipment was..."}_

"Yeah. She's also completely unimpeded by the invisible walls you've probably encountered, so knowing my luck I'd have hit a wall before I caught up with her."

Mitsuru sighed. _{"That complicates matters... But how does she know about Yasogami High enough to create this, by Norimoto's admission, near perfect replica?"}_

"Best theory I can give you is that the Fake Teddie, assuming he's the one who abducted her, is to blame because he called me by that title I got for dealing with the Dark Hour."

 _{"...Proceed with caution, then. I'll attempt to get in contact with Aigis and Metis as soon as possible."}_

"Right. By the way, who won on your end?"

 _{"...Due to the rules of these 'battles', that would be Norimoto."}_

Roy bobbed his head. "Sounds about right, he did learn the Agaraki brand of combat bullshit from Katsuro after all. That aside, get him to direct you towards the gym, then see if you can head that way. I haven't tried working backwards yet, but Tatsumi's asleep in there right now and I asked Satonaka to see if she could make it back that way. Getting everyone together and roughly on the same page might not be a terrible idea."

 _{"Seeing as I cannot proceed forward, it would be a better course of action then. And Roy?"}_

"...Yeah, Senpai?"

 _{"The mission parameters have changed. Your primary goal is to save Labrys by any means necessary."}_

Roy smiled. "Copy that. Just keep me updated if anything changes on your end."

 _{"I will. Agent One out."}_

He lowered his hand from his earpiece, quickly stretching. "Well, duty calls. Sounds like Norimoto's pressing ahead, while some of my pals are gonna try backtracking to the Gym as well."

Chie nodded. "Okay. Just stay on your toes till we can come back you up, okay big guy?"

"I will, don't you worry!"

=0=

Roy quickly made his way out of the music room, now attempting to make his way to the main building of the replica Yasogami High. What unnerved him as he jogged through the halls was a myriad of humanoid silhouettes that seemed to take up residence in various places, like a shadow on the wall. They didn't seem aggressive or even capable of moving at all, but it felt like they were watching him as he made his way past. It was only more surreal once he reached the shoe lockers for the high school, several of the shades either sitting on top of the lockers or in a pose suggesting they were going about normal activity.

"Hello?" he called out, glancing between the various monitors. "Anyone home?"

None of the screens moved or even turned on.

-Pretty sure I've pissed off the good general now...- thought Roy, stepping towards the stairs. -But there's no way this is going to be as easy as it looks.-

"...Of all the people to encounter..."

The redhead turned, seeing Naoto standing on the side of the shoe lockers opposite the direction he'd come from.

"I'd hoped to find Kirijo-san first from your group..."

Roy bobbed his head. He wanted to test something – to see if the 'illusion' would make words come out of his mouth if he just said nothing.

Naoto arched an eyebrow. "...You're surprisingly quiet. Is something wrong?"

He smirked, but remained silent.

"A grin doesn't tell me anything..."

The redhead shrugged, his eyes glancing between the TV sets.

"...What are you...?" began the detective, following his gaze to catch sight of the monitors. "...Something about the screens?"

A grumble cut through the air, one of the screens suddenly dropping down right in front of Roy, a very agitated General Teddie on the screen.

 _["Look, I get it, you wanna go for the 'strong, silent type' image now. That's great and all, but you really need to say something!"]_ he exclaimed, glaring at the Wild Card. _["So unzip your lips and make with the conversa-!"]_

The General's 'orders' were cut off as Roy simply annihilated the entire TV with a punch.

Naoto blinked in surprise. "...So you were remaining silent on purpose."

 _["That was just uncalled for!"]_ exclaimed General Teddie's voice, now coming over the school's intercom. _["But don't think just because I can't watch means you can sneak off without a fight! And don't even think about holding back either, things better be grisly or neither of you get to move on to the next round!"]_

Roy sighed in unison with Naoto.

"It seems our next course of action has been decided for us..." remarked Naoto, pulling out a police baton from her coat. "At least neither of us favors bladed weapons."

"Yeah, but punches still hurt... and so do hitting sticks." noted the redhead, shifting his stance. "Just keep that thing aimed above the belt."

Naoto chuckled softly. "Will you get me appraised of the situation once our 'match' is over if I do?"

"Absolutely."

"Very well."

To Roy's surprise, Naoto made a move to attack first and aimed for his chest with her baton. He was able to block, but her small stature along with the impressive agility her Persona afforded her made her subsequent attacks exceptionally tricky. What really had him worried, however, was when Yamato Sumeragi attacked with a jet of flame. While it didn't fully connect, Roy didn't fail to notice it still hurt despite the fact Kwaku Anansi nullified fire-based attacks. It put him a bit more on the defensive as he tried to figure out the full capabilities Naoto and her Persona possessed.

Sadly for Roy, the answer to that quickly turned out to be 'a lot of things'. Aside the obvious physical assault of both Persona and User, the former displayed the capacity to unleash Fire, Wind, Almighty, and Darkness based attacks. Worse still was the defensive ability Yamato Sumeragi displayed. Roy had lashed out with a blazing, full-body tackle from Kwaku Anansi, only for a riot shield made of light purple energy to intercept the attack and leaving Naoto entirely unharmed. That said, he didn't fail to notice how tired using that move had left Naoto and capitalized upon it, and soon enough the 'bell' rang once she found herself knocked to the ground by a powerful sweeping kick from Roy.

"Well, that's the end of that..." sighed the redhead, walking over and offering a hand to Naoto. "But I'll start you off with some good news; Norimoto's here and trying to figure out what the hell's going on."

"...I see." she hummed, accepting his assistance to get to her feet. "What do you know about the situation?"

"Y'know that hijacking at the airport? Yeah... the assholes basically kidnapped Aigis' older sister. It's... complicated, but it lead us out here and we went in to try and save her. Don't know WHY the inside of Labrys' head looks like Yasogami High, but that's about the only place we can be right now."

Naoto hummed, nodding her head. "...I see. That would explain why you used such a dangerous method to access this world..."

"...What, were you following us? And if you were, that implies to me you jumped in right after we did."

"...Like your own situation, it's complicated."

Roy sighed. "Isn't it always? But hey, most of the Investigation Team is trying to meet up in the Gym since well... Tatsumi kinda suffered from a bad case of no sleep and a big TV in his living room. I'm trying to send anyone who 'loses' in this stupid tournament that way so that if these stupid invisible walls come down, everyone can move about without issue."

Naoto nodded again. "A logical course of action... who all have you encountered besides myself?"

"Just Tatsumi and Satonaka. The Teddie running this show seems to be a fake. Mitsuru contacted me earlier and said she and Akihiko both had to fight Norimoto and lost. No word on any of my other friends or the rest of the team yet..."

"I see. Hopefully I'll be able to reach the gymnasium without issue..."

"Yeah... And keep an eye out? Apparently Kujikawa and the real Teddie have been missing since before all this tournament garbage started."

The detective nodded sharply. "I will. You better get moving, I doubt the 'host' has infinite patience..."

"Oh I'm sure he doesn't, but I really don't care. I'm making a rug out of this knock-off bear suit once I beat him unconscious."

* * *

 **Author Notes** \- Roy having a bad time with the Tier 3 Personas of the Investigation Team is honestly more fun to write than it really should be. Also I swear this chapter seemed longer when I was writing it, but it's actually fairly short... weird. Anywho, as mentioned in the review answers, here's the titles and themes for the Stacked Deck cast of Arena fighters:

Rusei's Theme - _Moonlit World_ [Sounds like a Digital Devil Saga song ate Time to Make History]

Roy - Title: Raging Blackjack Demon. Theme: _Aces High, Crimson Wild_ [A weird Jazz/Metal hybrid song, kinda like the Persona Live Mix of Mass Destruction]

Metis - Title: Forgetful Hammer Seraph. Theme: _Always On Time_ [Upbeat remix of The Answer's Interstice of Time]

I'll share more once the story reaches Ultimax, since there are a few more fighters there as well... not that I doubt you guys didn't already see that coming.


	3. Heartful Cry

Pre-Chapter Review Answer Corner GO!

 **Delta XIII** \- I mean, Roy doesn't exist in Persona canon, so of course his presence is gonna just destroy the conventional flow of the plot. That's kind of the point!

 **Cody the Worldwalker** \- Sadly no, but you're also not entirely correct about SEES not having Tier 3 personas. Koromaru and Shinjiro do, and technically Roy's Kwaku Anansi is as well. Everyone else is... Eh, effectively tier 2.5, since they all got unique skills from Roy hitting max friendship with them.

And now, on with the chapter!

* * *

Roy's advance further to the upper floors of the replica Yasogami High was more annoying than anything else, particularly because of the amount of times he had to turn around because of the damned invisible walls in his path. He was barred from the third floor, but once he began to head to one side of the second floor, a strange sensation reverberated through his mind. Blue seemed to dance at the edges of his vision at times, till finally once he grasped the handle of a classroom door and pulled it open, the interior of the classroom had a distinctly... Velvet tint to it.

"Oh what now?" sighed Roy, stepping into the bizarrely blue room. "Did the general just dump paint everywhere?"

 _["M-My arena!"]_

A monitor in the room descended, appearing to 'look' around before it turned to face the redhead, the bear on the screen looking panicked.

 _["What happened to my arena!? What did you do!?"]_

Roy shrugged. "Dude, you tell me! I haven't seen this..." he began to trail off, realizing why the color seemed nostalgic to him. "...color in... years..."

A happy, hummed tune quickly fills the air before a woman rose from behind a desk, what looked like a large paintbrush in one hand.

"Ah, my apologies! This place was so dreary, and someone left a can of blue pain over on that table so I thought I would improve the décor!" stated the silver haired woman, a smile on her face.

"First of all Elizabeth, it's 'Paint', not 'Pain'. I'm not even sure how you got those words mixed up, you're speaking Japanese, not English!" stated Roy. "Second of all, why are you even here!?"

 _["And thirdly, what made you think you could just... impose your 'whims' upon my Arena!?"]_ demanded General Teddie, his tone furious. _["Well I hope you like staying in one spot, because once this tournament is over I'm gonna-!"]_

The bear's ranting stopped abruptly as Elizabeth casually walked over to the bucket of pain and set the brush down on it.

 _["...H-How...?"]_ asked the general. _["I... put walls right around you...!"]_

Elizabeth scoffed, producing her tome from thin air and pulling a card out of it. "Such parlor tricks can get stuffed!"

 _["YOU-"]_

The screen General Teddie was speaking through was quickly cut in half, the lower section falling to the ground as the card the attendant had thrown embedded itself in the wall behind Roy.

"No, seriously, why are you here?" asked the redhead, somehow not even phased by how casually Elizabeth was about insulting the fake bear. "How did you even find this place?"

"You're exceptionally simple to track, you know." remarked the platinum blonde woman. "I have a vested interest in seeing how you've grown since your return! It was rather unfortunate that your powers were so dramatically effected once you were freed from the Seal... I'd thought I was more careful then that when I was assisting Lady Nyx."

Roy shifted. "Liz, this is not a good time... kinda have some important shit to handle, and I don't think Labrys' head can handle you tearing up the place in a brawl with me..."

Elizabeth giggled. "I anticipated that. I used the... Paint, was it? As a medium – Even my strongest blows will not cause harm to the mind we are currently within, so long as we stay within the colored area."

"...Okay that's actually clever, but I'm serious here, Liz." he stated. "This is not a good time."

"What happened to your resolve?"

Roy's entire body tensed at the question. "What does that have to do with not wanting to fight right this moment?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Nothing! It just seems as though the host for this 'tournament' will not let either of us leave without a battle, so regardless of how you feel, we will have to come to blows. And no, I will not simply make an exit unless you agree to another duel."

"...Y'know, I'll give you credit. You're making the most of the situation at hand to get what you're after." sighed the redhead, finally retrieving his cane and transforming it into a pair of gauntlets. "Same rules as last time?"

The large Pixie appeared beside the attendant, lightning arcing around its body.

"Of course." answered Elizabeth.

"Hmm. Well, good thing I was counting on you giving me no way out." he said, a small wisp of green and black smoke around his left hand that seemed to trail up from the ground.

Her eyes darted down to the floor, expecting to see the same combustible mist curling around her ankles, but to her surprise there wasn't any. She looked up just in time to Roy hurling an entire school desk at her, but easily swatted it aside.

"C'mon Liz, I'm not gonna insult your intelligence and think you wouldn't be expecting that." he remarked. "I did blow you up twice in that last brawl..."

She chuckled, drawing a card from her tome "And yet you're still quite clever to think that far ahead. In addition to making a rather underhanded first blow..."

"Your clothes were only barely singed after that last fight, too. I think the only people close to being as sturdy as you without being Wild Cards are Metis and Tatsumi."

Elizabeth's smile turned... subtly dangerous. "So you intend to go all out."

"It's get through you or hope Norimoto can handle not only whatever took Labrys, but potentially her Shadow as well by himself." stated Roy, the mirth leaving his voice as he shifted his stance. "I'd rather be there to back him up."

A silence fell between them for roughly five seconds before their clash began. Fire and lightning danced around the blue painted room, the chairs and desks in the room quickly being broken or pushed aside as they fought. They matched each other blow for blow, though even with her prodigious stamina Elizabeth knew she was being pushed back. While he was impressively strong physically, the magical aspect of his Persona was ultimately more powerful, and when coupled with his skill at fighting in tandem with it made him a far more fearsome opponent – especially with the additional experience he had in his time assisting the Investigation Team on top of what he had from battling alongside SEES.

Roy had also completely lied about not using the combination of Stagnant Air and Kwaku Anansi's fire abilities to explode Elizabeth more, which probably helped. To her credit, it took three of them to keep her down this time.

Laughter filled the room as the 'bell' rang, Elizabeth laying on her back on the scorched and flash-dried paint.

"My my, I had anticipated improvement, and yet you have still surprised me!"

Roy sighed, rubbing the muscles on his left shoulder. "Yeah, I'm just glad I'm not picking up Satellite TV signals this time..."

She giggled, sitting up to look at the redhead. "Regardless, the conditions for you to proceed unimpeded have been met. Given the urgency in your voice, I doubt you wish to stay and converse."

"...One question before I go." began Roy. "Why're you here?"

"I wish... to understand." Elizabeth replied, earning a confused look from the Wild Card in front of her. "Though I have beheld the strength of bonds by observing your journey, I do not think it is enough. There is more I must know."

The redhead hummed. "So what, you gonna throw yourself at persona users until you figure it out?"

"If that it what it takes, yes." she stated, rising to her feet and bowing. "Thank you for your time, Roy. I wish you luck in your endeavor."

A smirk curled onto Roy's face before he started towards the exit. "Thanks, Liz."

* * *

Roy sighed, having hit another wall on his attempt to get to the stairs.

-Well isn't this just goddamn wonderful. Maybe I should've asked Liz to show me how to get through these walls easier...- he thought, keeping one hand on the 'wall' as he walked down the hallway.

 _{"Fortune?"}_

He stopped in his tracks, reaching for his earpiece. "What's up, Senpai?"

 _{"You were correct in assuming working backwards would be unobstructed. I've rendezvoused in the gymnasium with a... rather large group of people at this point."}_

"Oh yeah? How many of ours, how many of Norimoto's?"

 _{"Myself, Akihiko, and Aigis. Of the 'Investigation Team', there is..."}_ the line went silent for a moment. _{"...Tatsumi, Satonaka, and Shirogane. Those still unaccounted for are all from Norimoto's group."}_

Roy shifted uneasily, then resumed walking. "Aigis is there...? Who beat her?"

 _{"Norimoto."}_

"...Okay. After the crazy moves both Satonaka and Shirogane pulled, I'm now very concerned about what Norimoto has up his sleeve with that World Arcana of his..."

There was silence before Mitsuru began speaking again. _{"...I've just heard from Metis. It would seem Norimoto has won against her as well, as per this tournament's rules."}_

"Cripes... I know he's hellbent on rescuing people from this side, but does anyone know if something has him on edge? He's usually pretty controlled in how hard he fights..."

 _{"He'd..."}_ A different voice was on the line now. _{"He'd said something about wishing to 'disprove a claim' the... impostor Teddie had made."}_

"Aigis? Hey... are you okay?"

 _{"I... don't know. Ever since we arrived here, I've... Ngh. Felt strange... like something is trying to... slowly pull something out of me."}_

Roy stopped again. "...Anyone else feeling that, or just you?"

 _{"So far... just me. I'm... I'm going to sit back down. Mitsuru, here-"}_

The line crackled for a moment before the Kirijo heiress' voice came over once again.

 _{"Once Metis reaches us, I'm going to see how far forward we can get before being stopped. I suspect there is more effort in keeping the remaining 'contenders' going where the General desires than keeping those defeated from moving about."}_

Roy nodded. "Right... I'll be in touch if I find anyone else. And... keep an eye on Aigis for me, please?"

 _{"Understood... and I will."}_

A sigh escaped the redhead as he pressed on, only to quickly groan in annoyance when yet another wall blocked him. He looked to one side, seeing the door to a classroom, and sighed once more.

"Here we go again..." he grumbled, opening the door and stepping inside.

* * *

Roy didn't even look around for who could be in the room, instead withdrawing several of the object storing cards he had with him and looking through them. He heard someone trying to talk to him, but paid no mind until at last he retrieved what he'd been looking for... which turned out to be a set of speakers and an MP3 player. He quickly connected them, then hit 'shuffle' to start playing a song and set the device on a desk that he'd slid over into the back corner of the room.

Yosuke simply watched all this happen in silence, staring at Roy in confusion when the redhead simply began to dance. Not well, but he was certainly trying.

"...Roy, how many times have you hit your head on something today?"

"Just don't feel like talking to a loser."

The brunet persona user arched an eyebrow at the statement, seeming unconvinced.

"And I'm supposed to be insulted by that? It's..." Yosuke paused, fighting back a few giggles at how Roy was 'dancing'. "...Not really helped by your moves there, pal."

"Eh. Better than you can do, that's for..." Roy trailed off as he turned, his back to Yosuke now. "...Okay this is getting ridiculous. Would you stop!?"

"...Stop what?"

"Not you!" Roy snapped, agitation in his voice. "HIM! This is hardly fitting behavior for..." he paused. "...Right. He can't hear me."

A TV monitor lowered from the ceiling, stopping near Roy's head as an image of Teddie appeared on the screen.

 _["Would you stop that!?"]_ demanded 'Teddie', further confusing Yosuke. _["And turn that stupid music off! You're disrupting my tournament!"]_

Instead of an answer, what appeared to happen to Yosuke was Roy suddenly belting out a song in what he assumed was English at the top of his lungs, and mid-chorus no less.

"-BIG ONES, SMALL ONES, SOME AS BIG AS YOUR HEAD~!" Roy continued, carrying the tune surprisingly well. "GIVE 'EM A TWIST, A FLICK OF THE WRIST, THAT'S WHAT THE SHOWMAN SAID~!"

"ROY!"

The redhead paused, turning to look over his shoulder at Yosuke. "What?"

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Disrespecting the Fake Bear. Damn, now I've lost my place-" his expression changed as another song started playing. "Oh, forgot I had Yankovic's Greatest Hits on this thing!"

 _["I said turn it-!"]_

Roy glared at the screen. "Excuse you, I am trying to have a conversation here while listening to some good music. Please go away." he poked the power button on the TV, and to his mild surprise it actually turned off. "...Huh. SO!" he turned towards Yosuke. "How much do you know about this whole dumpster fire of a situation we're in?"

"Uh... Midnight Channel was on last night, Rise, Kanji, and Teddie are missing, and I came in here with everyone else but we got separated as soon as we jumped through."

"Cool, cliff notes then: Everyone besides You, Kujikawa, Norimoto, Teddie, and Amagi are in the gym, most of my friends are here, this is the inside of the mind of Aigis' older sister, I don't know why it's Yasogami High, and I'm running out of patience for this whole 'making people fight their friends for no good reason' tournament garbage."

Yosuke blinked, muttering to himself as he processed that statement. "...I saw Yukiko a little while ago. She was stuck on the other side of some invisible wall, then ran off to check out one of the closets of cleaning supplies right before I came in here. It was rattling or something, but I dunno where she ended up; I haven't been able to get out of here for the past twenty minutes."

"Hmm. That just leaves Kujikawa and the Real Fuzzums unaccounted for. Norimoto's still pressing on towards what I can only hope is being able to help me make a rug out of the fake Teddie."

"So what's this about fighting friends...?"

Roy sighed. "Right. Fake Teddie is trapping people in rooms, then doing... I dunno, some magic bullshit to make it sound like they're antagonizing each other? I've only heard people reacting to me when I try to talk to them, but unless the two of us duke it out, neither of us get to leave the room."

"Are you serious!? That's... really cliché. Also dumb."

"Right?" asked Roy, walking over to put away the speakers and music player. "Unfortunately, even with TVs busted, Fake Ted's locks don't open without a brawl. No half-baked crap either, though I don't know how he'd be able to tell."

Yosuke groaned. "Great... I get to nurse bruises after this."

"Well, heading the way that DOESN'T seem to 'progress' the tournament is easy, everyone who 'lost' was gathering in the Gym before trying to see how far they could move up last I heard."

"...I mean at least that's something? But whatever..." he pulled out the two kunai he kept on hand for fighting Shadows. "...May as well get this over with."

Roy gave the younger persona user a sympathetic smile as he took up a combat stance. "I promise to at least not break anything."

Yosuke just rolled his eyes and slipped on his headphones. He barely stood a chance against Roy, he wasn't about to lie to himself about it. It was hard to forget the times he'd seen the redhead's fist pulverize shadows made of what seemed to be solid rock, nor the staggering capabilities of the Personas he wielded; least of all Chaos. Yet despite the odds against him, Yosuke still felt compelled to do something he tended to save for the Investigation Team's major rescues and battles, regardless of how little actual help it would provide him.

As any of the Investigation Team would tell whomever asked, Yosuke had an affinity for music – even owning and practicing on a guitar as a hobby. In a fight, he often had on his headphones and listened to music he enjoyed, even if at a more 'ambient' volume so as to not fail to notice his friends calling out to him. He even had different playlists set up for situations, such as one comprised solely of his all time favorite songs that he exclusively listened to when the team was face to face with a victim's Shadow or something on the level of the Sagiri. Said playlist was his music of choice for the rather poor situation of being pitted against Roy Fortune.

What Roy could tell someone who asked, however, was a close friend of his swore by the power of music in battle as a Persona User. Hamuko never failed to have headphones on in Tartarus, operating under similar logic to Yosuke's own. And as she would tell the story, having her favorite tunes playing made her fight better. Roy never fully believed the claim, but couldn't bring himself to admit he found it unlikely... until the present situation, where he was being given a point blank demonstration in both how far Yosuke's abilities had progressed since last they crossed paths and how much hearing his all time favorite song would inspire the brunet to give Roy a run for his money.

Roy yelped as he darted out of the way of Yosuke's hyper aggressive charge for roughly the fifth time, the brunet having practically turned himself into a tornado-powered pinball with knives taped to it.

-God damn, he's even faster than Shirogane...!- noted the redhead, evoking Kwaku Anansi to intercept Takehaya Susano-o before the other Persona could slam into him. -The hell does his next level Susano-o let him do, achieve fucking super saiyan!?-

Even with his ludicrous speed on his side however, Yosuke couldn't dodge Roy forever... especially not when a sudden, green and black fog burst up in half the room, making visibility poor enough that the redhead was able to get in a sneak attack. The instant the 'bell' sounded, the the brunet saw a hand being offered to help him stand up.

"Thanks..." Yosuke sighed, taking the hand to get to his feet as he turned off his music player. "That wasn't you at full tilt, was it?"

Roy made a so-so gesture. "It was close, but not quite. I'm pretty sure going all out would result in me breaking bones, and I'm not keen on doing that to friends, y'know?"

The brunet chuckled. "Fair enough... and, does your Persona make you immune to wind attacks normally?"

"Nah, just resistant... why?"

"Well, I ended up fireproof once Susano-o turned into Takehaya Susano-o... But uh, kinda had a close shave with that fireball you lobbed out. That's... not a good sign to me."

Roy hummed. "I noticed that when I had to duel Shirogane. She sent a flame jet my way, and it nearly roasted me despite Kwaku Anansi being immune... I think it's something the Fake Teddie is doing to make sure people can fight, because otherwise if he made someone fight a guy immune to their Persona's main means of attack and they themselves aren't a brawler like Tatsumi or Satonaka..."

"Yeah, it'd be a pretty short 'fight' if you could even call it that." agreed Yosuke, putting a hand on his chin. "What do you think this fake even wants? I mean, he kidnapped someone and now he's making us fight each other? How does it even know about us?"

"...Y'know, that's a really good question! He had a whole video on you guys for his stupid tournament..." Roy noted, reaching for his earpiece. "Senpai, it's Roy. Got another one coming your way, whats your guys' status?"

{"Trapped on the first floor. We made it as far as the shoe lockers before none of us could proceed further."}

"...Tatsumi and Aki with you?"

{"Yes, Tatsumi was how we noticed the 'walls' were moving at all."}

"Sounds like he's holding up okay. Also, Hanamura spotted Amagi earlier. She turned up for you guys?"

{"No, not yet. Satonaka insists she hears someone up the stairs fighting with a door, but we can't proceed to see what's happening..."}

Roy hummed. "Right... I'll let Hanamura know before I move on. Roy out." He turned towards Yosuke. "So apparently someone's trying to open something on the second floor? Was that were you saw Amagi?"

"...Yeah, it's just down the hall..." replied the brunet, shifting slightly before he started towards the door Roy came through. "I'll see if I can head that way, you head for the asshole at the end of all this."

"Right. Just watch your back, I don't trust this fake bear..."

* * *

Roy only caught a glimpse of Yosuke hustling the other direction down the hallway as he headed for the stairs, feeling about for any invisible walls as he proceeded. They quickly curved and directed him to one room in particular, though he didn't fail to notice someone standing at the other entrance to the room in question. A familiar someone, who only slightly looked out of place in the building due to the sheathed sword he was carrying in his left hand.

Rusei Norimoto.

"Well, this is a hell of a reunion..." laughed the redhead, leaning against the door rather than opening it.

"Indeed it is... and I believe 'hell' is an apt descriptor of what this place is to our gracious host."

Roy arched an eyebrow. "Really? Well, I bet he's gonna throw a fit if we just keep talking in the halls. May as well get this shit out of the way..."

Rusei sighed. "If only to get back to the task at hand..."

The two Wild Cards turned towards their respective doors, opening them and stepping inside. They stared at each other from across the classroom, hearing the doors 'lock' behind them. After a long moment of silence, one of the monitors descended from the ceiling.

 _["Heheh, now those are some fierce looks in your eyes!"]_ exclaimed General Teddie as the screen turned on, sounding beside himself with anticipation. _["Is that a rivalry under the surface I sense?"]_

"No." Rusei answered immediately, shifting his attention to the monitor. "Unlike you, I derive no joy from being forced to fight people who've done nothing to wrong me."

 _["Aww, where's your competitive spirit, sensei? You were in the spirit of things last time..."]_

Rusei scoffed. "Hardly."

The General's eye twitched at the statement. "...Really? And don't you care what happens to my hostage?"

To Roy, the 'camera' on the fake Teddie shifted to an empty space. Rusei's expression, however, suggested the younger Wild Card was seeing something there.

"...And how exactly did you come by said 'hostage'?" inquired the charcoal-haired teen. "Last I saw her was before I came to this tournament, and she was baking with my mother."

Roy arched an eyebrow. "What, is he saying he has Nanako-chan? There's nobody on the screen, my dude..."

Rusei's eyes widened a fraction as he looked in Roy's direction, but the Monitor likewise turned.

 _["Stay outta the conversation when it doesn't concern you, bub!"]_ snapped the General, glaring through the screen. _["You're already in enough trouble as it is!"]_

Roy grinned. "What, because I don't want to play your game? Tough tinkies, you've been making me fight decent people for no good reason, so why the hell should I care what you want?"

 _["Really? And what about your blonde lady friend?"]_

"...What about her?"

Despite the glare, the bear smiled. _["Aren't you worried about her? She's not looking so hot... Serves her right for cheating."]_

"The hell are you talking about?" inquired Roy, doing his best to keep a straight face despite the worry bubbling up in his heart. "Aigis hasn't cheated at anything."

 _["Then why does she get to look like that, huh?"]_ the General demanded. _["How come she's not like the other one!? Why is she so damn special!?"]_

-...That's a very direct line of questions.- the wild card noted internally. "Long story that I doubt you'd listen to. Coming from me, it'd also be biased as hell."

The bear growled. ["...Then make with the fighting."]

As the monitor rapidly retreated back up to the ceiling, leaving the two Persona Users alone.

"...One request before we begin."

Roy arched an eyebrow as he shifted his stance.

"If I lose here, and that Impostor does truly have Nanako..." Rusei met the gaze of his fellow Wild Card. "...Save her."

"Just as long as you do the same for Labrys."

Rusei smirked, taking a combative position. "Naturally."

If anyone else has been present in the room for the moments before their clash, they could have heard a pin drop in the calm before the storm. They darted forward at the same time, quickly beginning to trade blows. It was the first, and both hoped only, time the two Wild Cards ever fought. It was a more subdued duel at first, the two sticking to their preferred means of physical combat, though in time both Kwaku Anansi and Tsukuyomi Otoko arose to meet each other in battle. Though neither Persona fully unleashed the elements at their command, their presence still added to the odd tension in the air.

The General was on the metaphorical edge of his seat as he watched the fight. It was close – far closer than he'd thought possible. Rusei was without a doubt the superior melee fighter between the two, even if he favored a weapon as opposed to his fists, and Roy clearly exceeded his successor in terms of skill with a Persona. A similar distinction could be made about their Personas; Tsukuyomi's capabilities and attack patterns heavily implied it excelled at picking a single target and annihilating it, where as Anansi simply devastated swaths of the battlefield with its attacks. Blow for blow, fire for light, it was a battle worthy of being considered the 'finals' of the tournament.

As the duel carried on, it slowly became more apparent to the fighters who among them would win. Despite their best efforts to go at it with as much of their strength as possible without it looking like they were truly holding back, in the end one of them was more accustomed to controlling their might, and Rusei Norimoto hit the ground near one of the classroom doors and stayed down till the bell rang. Heavy, ragged breaths escaped Roy Fortune as his Persona vanished, his gaze fixed upon his friend.

"...Hey. You still with me, Rusei?"

A cough prefaced the younger Wild Card's reply. "...Mostly." he pushed himself up to sit against the door. "Though I'll admit, I fared better than I expected to if we ever came to blows..."

Roy chuckled. "Honestly I went into that fight expecting to lose, I was just gonna make you work for it..."

"...Even with what's going on?"

"Hey man, I'm a weird guy with weird priorities in the heat of the moment."

"Clearly..." laughed the charcoal-haired teen. "...Hopefully you can at least reach the Impostor now."

The redhead let out a sigh, looking towards the door nearest to him. "...Yeah. Might wanna stay here instead of trying to meet up with the others, though. If these walls go down while I'm trying to brawl with the Fake, I'd feel a lot better knowing you're close enough to pull my ass out of the fire."

"Well, you hit me pretty hard right there at the end so I'd prefer to just sit still for the moment..." said Rusei, both pain and mirth in his tone.

"Yeah, probably a good idea then..."

"Hold on."

Roy stopped as he put his hand on the door, looking back over his shoulder.

"The Impostor has Rise. They're in the announcement room... he stepped out long enough for her to get a message out to me." Rusei stated. "It's on the other end of this floor of the school – just keep going down the hall past the stairs, it should be on the left side."

"Right. Thanks for the tip, I'll make sure to send you the rug I make out of the fake." Roy responded before he darted out the door.

* * *

To his surprise, there weren't any invisible walls in his way as he jogged down the hallway.

 _{"...Roy...?"}_

The redhead came to a stop a few paces away from the room Rusei had directed him towards. He put a hand on his earpiece. "Aigis?"

 _{"...I can't... I can't feel them..."}_

"...Feel what?" he asked, concern rapidly taking root in his mind.

 _{"Our... your personas... I can't... feel them anymore..."}_ she answered, her voice wavering. _{"I... can feel you, but it's... like you're far away... What's... happening...?"}_

Roy took a deep breath, trying to push through the panic as he slowly began to cycle through the Personas he carried. "...I don't know. Just... take it easy. I'm about to get Labrys, then we can get the hell out of here."

 _{"...Okay... Please, be careful..."}_

"I will."

The line went dead, even though Roy had been expecting to hear from Mitsuru the moment Aigis stopped talking. He took a step forward, but a sudden shout from within the room prompted him to practically rip the door off the wall as he burst into the room. It was a sight he'd been prepared for – General Teddie standing to one side, Labrys and Rise on the other. His sudden arrival drew at least the brunette's attention, her eyes going wide when she saw who had arrived.

"Roy, YOU'RE here!?"

"It's just been one of those days, y'know?" said the redhead in response to the idol's question. "Duty calls and all that jazz..."

"The 'hero arriving in the nick of time', huh?" scoffed the General, is eyes changing from black to gold as it blinked.

Roy sighed. "Look, just drop the act already. You're a real shitty imitation, and there's only two people you could be, so why not just spare me the headache of having to guess?"

Rise looked between Roy and the General, confusion in her eyes. "Wait, you know who that is!?"

"I have a hunch, at least."

"Heh, so you ARE smarter than you look..." said the fake with a malicious grin. "Alright then, feast your eyes o **n THIS!"**

Black ichor bubbled up around the 'neck' of General Teddie, suddenly launching his head clear off his body before it wrapped around the entire 'costume', turning into a pitch black sphere hovering in the air. Slowly, it began to take another shape, though it was enveloped in a bright light before it fully changed. Once the glow faded, a silver haired young woman stood in its place. A massive, double headed axe propelled itself off her back, and she caught it quickly. As she pointed the head of the ax towards the ground, she lifted her head and opened her eyes, lips twisted into a sinister smile as a vicious look settled into her burning gold eyes.

 **"I am a shadow, the true self..."**

"I was afraid of that..." sighed Roy, shifting his stance. "The axe is a surprise, but I suppose Mitsuru did mention your systems couldn't handle firearms..."

Labrys, however, just stared in horror at the mechanical doppelganger. "She... has my face... It's just like he said, it's... another me..."

"I don't spin stories about shit like this." stated the redhead, glancing towards the silver haired girl.

 **"Stories..." a sinister chuckle bubbled out of the Shadow. "How about one about that coward over there?"** It pointed towards Labrys with the axe in its hand. **"Hiding behind delusion so she doesn't have to face facts! That's not what she really looks like, and she knows it!"**

"No... Stop!" Labrys shook her head, stepping back and away from Rise. "I'm not like that...!"

"No, don't talk to it! That's just what it wants!"

Roy took a few steps towards the girls, slowly starting to place himself between them and the Shadow. "Among other things..."

 **"What, now you're going to defend a murderer? Wow, some cop you are pal..."** scoffed Shadow Labrys. **"I'd say it's sad, but that's nothing compared to her. Using her power on herself to mess with her own senses just so she can try to fit in..."**

"And if she has it, so do you..." noted the redhead. "Explains how you've been goading people into fighting each other..."

 **"What's wrong with that?"** it asked, a strangely nonchalant tone to its voice. "Those scientists didn't seem to think twice when they did it to me."

Roy arched an eyebrow. "Wait who did what to who for how many skittles?"

 **"Those humans! They forced me to fight – every single one, till I was the last one standing!"** shouted the Shadow, pointing at him accusingly. **"Didn't stop, didn't think twice, just laughed! Laughed as I cut them down, even forcing us to fight if we tried to avoid it! They didn't care how much it hurt, they just wanted their precious 'data' so they could make me fight more! That's all I am! A weapon – a machine made only to fight! Nobody can understand how I've suffered..."**

"Stop... I've had enough!" shouted Labrys. "I'm human! I'm... I'm not like that!"

The Shadow burst out laughing. **"You're really wrapped up tight in that denial, huh? Well here, let me open your eyes!"**

With a snap of its fingers, TV static started to envelope the real Labrys. Each time it flickered across her body, more and more did she resemble her Shadow. Even among all the noise surrounding her, a part of Roy noted her appearance, with her axe in its travel size form strapped to her back, reminded him of a classical depiction of an angel... though he would easily concede he never saw any classical angels wearing a girl's high school uniform.

 **"Take a good look! That's what you really look like!"** bellowed the Shadow. **"You can deny it all you want, but that's reality! You're not human, and you never will be, no matter how much you lock away your memories and name!"**

"No, stop! Why are you doing this...!?" demanded Labrys, sinking to her knees and staring at her metal hands. "This... this isn't real...! I'm not a machine...!"

The doppelganger sighed, shaking his head. **"Oh, enough with the melodrama. Do us both a favor and remember me... remember yourself! It'll be better in the long run if you stop pretending to be human... They'll never accept you anyway!"**

"I mean, you're wrong, but hey, whatever helps you sleep at night."

Both Labrys turned to look at Roy, who'd dropped his combative stance and simply stood with his hands in his pockets.

"Granted, I'm not like a lot of other people, but I had a few talks about somethin' similar to this with Aigis back in the day." he continued, a nostalgic grin on his face. "Just because your body is made of metal doesn't mean you don't have a heart-"

 **"Shut up, and leave that cheater out of it!"** screamed the Shadow, now pointing its weapon at the redhead. "This has nothing to do with either of you! It's all about me..." it grinned, looking back at her true self. **"Isn't that right... Labrys?"**

"No... NO! Shut up!" Labrys squeezed her eyes shut and grasped her head with both hands. "YOU'RE NOT ME!"

Shadow Labrys quickly began laughing manically, though if any words were said he didn't hear them. His first priority was to grab both Labrys and Rise, backing pulling them away from the rapidly transforming Shadow as fast as he could. He practically shoved them both out the door of the announcement room, shutting it behind them.

"Kujikawa, get set up out there!" he shouted, turning back towards Shadow Labrys as the room twisted. "And try to contact everyone in the building if you can!"

 _{Roy, you're not seriously gonna try fighting it by yourself, are you!?}_

The Wild Card glanced out one of the windows in the room. Countless mangled bodies of mechanical girls drifted past on cranes over what seemed to be a sea of fire outside. It was... horrifying, but not quite as much as the monster in the room. The creature took the form of a colossal Minotaur, its head resembling a skull and its body only seemed to come halfway out of the floor. Heavy chains connected to spikes across its body, as if attempting to keep it shackled to whatever was through the 'portal' that seemed to act as its lower torso and legs.

-Got no choice in the matter.- he replied mentally, azure flame springing forth around his feet. -Can you patch me through to the others? Or at least get a message out...?-

 _{Y-Yeah...}_ there was a short pause. _{...I think that's everyone. Can you all hear me?}_

-Thanks, Rise.- Kwaku Anansi burst forth beside him. -Aigis... Metis... If you can hear me, I'm sorry. Labrys... her Shadow's gone berserk.- He brace himself for impact as the Minotaur let out a horrible, bellowing roar. -I'm gonna do everything I can to save her though. I promise!-

* * *

 **Author Notes** \- Well Roy, you tried, but the effort was certainly appreciated. Now just don't get flattened by Asterios and you'll be fine :V

It's also occurred to me I didn't list the Instant Kill attacks I have for the unique to Ultimax Arena fighters last time. I have names for 'em at least, and if you want me to share, lemme know in the reviews and I'll slot 'em into the author notes next chapter.


	4. Now I Know

Pre-Chapter Review Answer Corner GO!

 **Delta XIII -** Oh yeah, it's why Roy mentioned 'Pain' and 'Paint' not being similar in Japanese. I actually fact checked that before I committed to the joke, because they're really not at all similar. Had to keep Elizabeth's weird misunderstandings of words in the story somehow, after all. And yes, the 'Instant Kills' for Arena/Ultimax are basically Fatalities. I'll have 'em listed in the Author Notes at the bottom like I did with the titles and songs.

 **Guest -** Possible given Roy's tier of shenaniganry, but it's far more likely all the names for his combos and specials would be poker, gambling, or tarot jokes in some capacity. Two of his Supers are named after songs/albums tho; 'Propane Nightmares' and 'Inhuman Rampage', the latter of which he would've only had in Ultimax.

And now, on with the chapter!

* * *

"What the hell...? Hey, did you all hear that, too!?"

"Hard not to!" Chie said in response to Akihiko's question as the assembled Shadow Operatives and Investigation Team members darted up the stairs. "That was-" She paused, coming to a stop when she saw a familiar face in the hallway. "-Rise!"

The idol glanced in their direction, though Kouzeon's visor made the motion hard to notice. "He's in there!" She pointed at the door, the building promptly rocking violently. _{ROY!?}_

"FINE FOR NOW, JUST FIGHTING A FUCKING MINOTAUR." came the redhead's voice through the door, followed by a few explosions. "NORMAL TUESDAY, DON'T EVEN WORRY ABOUT IT."

Akihiko scrambled past, trying to open the door. Despite his efforts, it wouldn't budge. "Are you kidding me!? It's stuck!" A change of tactics to attempt plowing through with a persona-amplified punch yielded no better results. "Oh come on!"

Kanji hustled over, pulling the silver haired boxer back. "No no, back up and let's hit it together. That's gotta do something, right?"

"Yeah... On three?"

Mitsuru sighed, signaling for Metis to step forward. "Set Aigis down next to..." she paused, looking at the unconscious mechanical maiden beside the door to the announcement room. "...Next to Labrys."

The dark haired girl nodded, glancing in the direction of the group trying to get the door open before she set her sister down. She looked between her two siblings, an ache forming in her chest. Labrys seemed to be merely sleeping peacefully, but Metis knew that the rumblings she heard were of someone fighting the darkness within her elder sister's heart. Aigis had lost consciousness from pain, and her body was displaying strange characteristics that, by all rights, shouldn't have been possible. She seemed to be in something resembling a state of flux – parts of her body occasionally resembling her original, mechanical form instead of the human body she had gained in her fight to save Roy's life.

"This is stupid!"

Metis looked over, surprised to see a persona now being used to attempt to tear open the door to no success.

"...This reminds me a great deal of the 'ring' those Atma Shadows would call forth when they attacked." Rusei noted as Tsukuyomi returned to his mind. "Meaning getting through is effectively impossible."

Another explosion shook the building, the sound of something hitting the door from the other side soon to follow.

Yosuke pounded on the wall. "Hey, you still with us in there!?"

* * *

Roy coughed, wiping his mouth only to bitterly laugh as he saw blood on the back of his hand. He heard someone shouting at him from the other side of the door, but didn't really catch the words as his attention was focused on his opponent. The minotaur would've been enough of a problem, but Shadow Labrys had another trick up its sleeve; The monster was acting more like a persona to the still-present doppelganger Labrys form.

"Heh, y'know, I got warned about you." remarked the Shadow, resting the axe it carried over one shoulder. "Talked you up as some big threat! But man, you don't live up to the hype at all..."

The redhead simply rolled his eyes as he got back to his feet, rushing towards the Shadow. Anticipating a feint, the minotaur smashed its titanic fists into the either path its foe could take, only to be surprised when Roy just kept barreling straight forward, forcing the doppelganger to try and ward him off. A few blows were exchanged before a side swing of its axe sent the Wild Card flying away, eliciting a laugh from Shadow Labrys.

"You're sharp, I'll give you that!" it said, arrogance in its tone as it slowly strode towards Roy as he got to his feet again. "But I've seen it all! Every strike, every dodge, parry, and feint! There's nothing you-"

With a flick of his wrist, Roy silenced the Shadow's taunts with a suddenly invoked Kwaku Anansi punching it across the face.

"There's a lot I can do that you've never seen." he remarked, his tone uncharacteristically cold.

The doppelganger staggered, attempting to fire one of its hands at the offending persona only to find it gone. "What!?"

"You maybe be the bull..." Roy sprinted forward, wreathed in blue flame. "But I'm not afraid of those horns."

* * *

"Kujikawa, what's his status!?"

The idol was silent for a moment. "He's... I think he's winning? I know he can take big hits, but this place just seems to turn off the resistances of everyone's Personas... I'm not even sure Kanji could take this kind of punishment!"

"What the hell's hitting him, a train!?" inquired the bleach blond in question.

"The Shadow... it's like it's trying to be a Persona User?" offered Rise, sounding worried. "There's a main 'body' and then there's a big... cow monster attacking as well, and that thing's probably about as big as Takejizaiten!"

Metis tilted her head slightly. "...As big as what?"

"Kanji's persona." replied Rusei, running his hand along a wall. "...Did anyone try seeing if making your own doors worked?"

"I did. Dove through a class window, but that bear wasn't happy about it." Akihiko reported. "Couldn't get back through the hole I made after that..."

The Wild Card hummed. "That was a window, not an actual wall though..."

"...And our gracious 'host' seems rather preoccupied." added Mitsuru, resting one hand on the hilt of her rapier.

"WHERE IS HE!?"

Heads turned, Teddie marching up and looking as ready to strangle someone as a cartoon bear mascot possibly could with Yukiko and Chie right behind him.

"Where is that fake!?" he demanded. "I'm making a rug out of him for locking me in that supply closet and pretending he could be anywhere near as charming as me!"

"...Now there's something I never expected him to say." Yosuke commented, turning back towards Rusei a moment later. "So what's the plan? See if we can tear a hole in the wall and help Roy out against that Shadow?"

The Wild Card nodded. "At least, it's an option. We'd have to still be careful however, as our struggle against Shadow Teddie proved that excessive damage to a dungeon like this can harm the victim."

"Oh yeah... Kanji had to jump after Rise when she passed out..." remarked Chie, her gaze shifting towards the door when another rumble shook the building. "But c'mon, we can't just leave him like that! There has to be something we can do!"

"...I didn't give up the last time I saw him do that." said Akihiko, staring at the door to the announcement room. "Even with things the way they were, I believed in him."

A weak, nostalgic chuckle escaped Mitsuru. "Things were far more dire then... I'd even considered sacrificing myself to help him win. Yukari felt much the same, as I recall..."

Kanji growled in frustration, now once again attempting to tear open the door.

"Just standin' around talking about what happened before ain't doin' shit!" he stated, slamming his shoulder into it a few times. "Big Red may be tough, but I ain't about to let a friend fight that thing without backup!"

"...Stand aside, please."

The bleach blond paused, turning towards Rusei. The look on his best friend's face was one he'd only seen once before; When the Investigation Team had first found Adachi in the TV World. Silently, Kanji moved out of the way as the Wild Card's stance shifted and blue flame rose around his feet. Before a persona could emerge from the fire, however, Rusei's expression changed rapidly.

"MOVE!" He shouted, Tsukuyomi surging forth in the opposite direction to push Kanji, Akihiko, and Yosuke to safety while Rusei yanked Mitsuru and Naoto aside as he darted past.

A good portion of the wall around the door of the Announcement Room had exploded, scattering dust and debris over most of the hallway. Rise had only barely seen it coming before Rusei did and was already bolting by the time he shouted, while Metis' reflexes as an Anti-Shadow Unit made it possible for her to grab both her sisters in the nick of time.

"What the hell is going on!?"

Heavy breathing, along with the sound of grinding metal and rattling chains filled the air before a good portion of the dust was scattered by a swing of Shadow Labrys' Minotaur companion's massive arm. A ragged cough was the next thing to catch the attention of the amassed Persona Users, the source revealing itself as Roy as he staggered to his feet.

" **How do you keep getting back up!?"** demanded Shadow Labrys, stepping up beside the Minotaur. **"Haven't you had enough by now!? Face it, even with those tricks up your sleeve, you can't beat me!"**

"Roy-!" Akihiko was cut off by a grunt of pain, having charged head-first into a newly formed invisible wall in the center of the hall. "-Ngh! Damn it!"

The Shadow turned its head, seeing the 'audience' it now had. A wicked smile curled onto its lips.

" **Oh, this is fantastic! Now all of your friends will get to watch you die!"** it laughed, hefting its axe onto its shoulder. **"And once I'm done with you, they're next!"**

When Roy started to rush the Shadow, it retorted with a heavy punch, launching one of its chain-connected fists right at him and sending him back to the ground. Yet even as he spat out blood again, he rose back to his feet.

" **Damn, you just don't know when to QUIT-"** The Minotaur's massive hand pinned the wild card to the far wall to add some emphasis to the statement. **"-Do you!?"**

The redhead laughed, despite his rather poor predicament. "Part of my charm."

" **...Hmph."** The Shadow scanned the faces watching, even noting several were trying to get through to join the fight. Its gaze settled upon Metis, Aigis, and Labrys, a smirk settling back onto its face. **"Maybe I should start with them... Blondie will be an interesting one to take apart."** A laugh. " **There's so many appealing options, I might not even wait! Just start tearing them apart after I break your arms and legs, and you'll just have to watch... helpless to stop it."** The Shadow faced Roy again, insanity burning in its golden eyes. **"Maybe then you'll understand the pain I've felt..."**

A scoff cut through the air much like the sound of a glass bottle shattering does.

"Why do you have to hurt people?" asked the redhead, blue flame leaking out from under the Minotaur's palm before the titanic creature suddenly found itself shoved off balance, Roy having pushed its hand off himself. "You do realize that makes you no better than the bastards who tormented you, right?"

 **"Shut up!"** Shadow Labrys snapped, grasping its axe with both hands.

He arched an eyebrow as blue fire began to rise around him once more. "What, never thought of it that way? You're at no moral high ground here, you're just being an asshole."

 **"SHUT UP!"** bellowed the mechanical doppelganger, charging towards the Wild Card with its axe poised to strike and the Minotaur looming behind it. **"YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!"**

An explosion of azure flame erupted around Roy once the Shadow was within striking distance, staggering the entity long enough for a number of Persona cards to suddenly start hovering around the redhead. Mitsuru and Akihiko both started shouting in panic, recalling the last time they'd seen more than a single card appear at his command. From the perspective of those watching, be it in awe or horror, twenty-two lights danced in the air before detonating into a brilliant, sapphire conflagration that was almost blinding to look at. From the view of the Shadow and Roy, a simple statement was the only warning given before twenty-two manifestations of one man's unbreakable bonds appeared at once and unleashed a combined blast that felt apt for the words that proceeded it;

"I know the weight of the World."

Shadow Labrys screamed in pain and rage as its form was assaulted by the attack, the minotaur it commanded exploding into blackened mist under the onslaught. It wasn't a protracted strike, each Persona in the small army called forward making only a single strike before retreating to the psyche from which they came. Roy fell to one knee, gasping for breath as he stared at his opponent, the Shadow slumped to the ground. The axe lay in front of it, its head hanging low as it just stared ahead. Whatever will it had struggle had been extinguished in the face of that final attack.

Several voices called out, a cluster of people gathering around the redhead. Some confused, some amazed, some terrified. It took Roy a few moments to properly be able to sort them out, given the staggering amount of pain that was shooting through his head. His first order of business was to accept a hand offered to him so he could get to his feet, an appreciative smile on his face.

"Thanks, Aki..."

"The hell were you even thinking!?" demanded the boxer, smacking his friend in the arm.

"Listen, the past five minutes have been a struggle..." Roy answered, pausing a moment later. "...At least I think it was five minutes. I might be wrong, but it felt pretty long and there was a lot of hurting in general..." he shook his head, starting to walk out of the small crowd towards a small cluster off to one side. "How's Aigis...?"

Metis looked up at him. "Not as bad as before... She's just asleep now."

"And Labrys?"

At the mention of her name, the silver haired girl began to stir, one hand on her head as she sat up.

"Wha...? What happened...?"

"Lots of things, most of them hurt. Don't worry about it though, a lot was my own damn fault." said Roy, offering her a hand. "Can you stand?"

Labrys began to reach out, only to hesitate about halfway.

"...Did you mean what you said?"

Roy arched an eyebrow. "Depends on which thing I've said you're talking about."

"...The thing before it interrupted you." she clarified, her voice somewhat low. "About... me havin' a heart despite..." her gaze drifted to her metallic hand for a moment. "...This."

He smiled. "Of course."

The sincerity in his tone wasn't unnoticed by the mechanical maiden, accepting the redhead's help to stand up.

"How can you say that?" Labrys asked, a sort of desperate curiosity in her voice. "After all the stuff that's happened?"

"Did you want any of this to happen?"

She shook her head. "No... I didn't want to hurt anybody or make 'em suffer..."

"Shadows can get pretty excessive in how they talk about the dark thoughts in your head. It's not fully true, but it's close enough that it feels like it is." sighed Roy, patting the silver haired girl on the shoulder. "I've been there, and it's pretty terrible."

"...You have?"

"A lot of us have." said Yosuke, joining the conversation. "It hurts to face yourself, but if you don't, nothing's gonna change."

Roy nodded, gesturing towards the brunet. "He's got the right of it. I can't say I really know what you've gone through to get to this point, but you don't have to go it alone anymore." he motioned towards Metis with his head. "You've got a few younger sisters and their pals to help you through the tough stuff, but right now..." his gaze drifted towards Shadow Labrys. "...This part's up to you."

Labrys stared at the redhead, following his gaze for a moment before turning towards Yosuke.

"You... had this happen, too?" she asked.

The brunet nodded. "Yeah." he motioned towards his fellow members of the Investigation Team. "They did, too. It's rough, but..." He smiled. "We got your back."

The mechanical maiden seemed to process the statement before she finally strode over to her kneeling doppelganger.

"...You were right." Labrys admitted. "I was hiding from the truth. I didn't wanna be alone anymore, I wanted people to talk to... people who'd understand me..." she sighed. "I'm sorry I ignored you all this time. I was so wrapped up in things, I left you all alone..." Kneeling down, she pulled her Shadow into a hug. "No... You really are me after all."

The Shadow's eyes went wide, a massive sigil appearing on the floor below it that quickly burst into light blue flame.

' _ **I am thou… and thou art I…'**_

Shadow Labrys' form was swept up in the fire, a new entity emerging in its place.

' _ **From the sea of thine soul, the acceptance of thine darkness has brought forth the strength of thine heart…'**_

The Persona bore no small amount of resemblance to Labrys herself, its form quite similar yet taller and more regal in posture. Soft red eyes gazed down at its summoner as the flames died down around it.

' _ **I am Ariadne, the Weaver of Crete…'**_

"This... is my Persona..." murmured Labrys as Ariadne vanished.

"Welcome to the club, I'm still workin' on the jackets..." Kanji remarked, fighting back a yawn. "Geez, I'm takin' a nap when I get home..."

Metis stared silently at where Labrys' Persona had been moments before. "...To think, all of you went through that..."

Labrys turned towards the other mechanical maiden, her eyes wide. "...Who... are you...?"

"My... name is Metis." replied the dark haired gynoid. "Sixth Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, and... one of your successors."

"...One of them...?"

"Aigis is the other, but..." Metis trailed off, noting that Roy was hovering near his girlfriend. "Well, it's kinda complicated with her right now."

The silver haired girl looked at the blonde in confusion.

"...She looks... human..."

"Your Shadow called her a 'cheater' because of that detail." noted Roy, picking Aigis up off the ground and carrying her. "And sounded like it was doing something to her as punishment for it."

Labrys flinched at that. "...Punishment, huh...?" A resigned sigh escaped her. "...What's gonna happen to me?"

"The first order of business will be leaving this place." stated Mitsuru. "From there, we'd need to transport you to a Kirijo Group facility to make sure this ordeal hasn't caused any permanent damage. With you being active as opposed to sealed in a container, that will make things considerably easier..."

The red-eyed girl blinked. "...You're... not gonna lock me away...?"

"Mother was quite insistent on seeing you reactivated once you were rediscovered." said the Kirijo Heiress. "I see no reason for why she would change her mind on that..."

"We're just gonna have to ask you a few questions on the ride to the lab probably." remarked Roy before he turned towards the Investigation Team. "Say, uh... I don't suppose you guys know a shortcut to get out of here?" He adjusted his grip on Aigis slightly. "Kinda got some pressing matters to sort out..."

"Leave it to Teddie!" exclaimed the bear, proudly puffing out his chest. "I'll lead the way!"

Roy just looked at Rise. "So you know a way out, right?"

"Yeah... Yeah!" she answered, nodding a few times. "Absolutely!"

"Cool, let's go then."

* * *

The march to the exit was lively, mostly with everyone bringing their companions up to speed on what they knew of the situation. Rise and Teddie admitted they had been abducted separately; The former due to her Persona being easily capable of circumventing the plans of 'General Teddie', the latter for reasons he wasn't certain of, only that he'd been locked in a supply closet for the grand majority of the 'tournament'. Yet for every question answered, another rose in its place... yet in time, the group made it to the 'roof' of the false Yasogami, revealing the 'entrance plaza' of the TV World the Investigation Team was accustomed to when entering from the Junes Electronics Department.

"Wait, so all that was right enter the proverbial front door?" asked Roy.

"...That is rather strange." Rusei noted, a hand on his chin. "There's typically enough distance between this place and a dungeon that a four to five minute walk is required..."

"...You actually timed that out?" Yosuke asked, a curious look on his face.

"I... got curious on a few of our training days."

Akihiko hummed. "Most of you guys went through the same thing Labrys just did, right?"

"Correct. Save for Rusei, Yosuke-san, Chie-san, and Teddie, we were abducted and thrown into this world." Naoto stated. "I was under the impression Roy-san had told you all about what was going on..."

"Had a thought..." the boxer turned towards Labrys. "When did you actually awaken?"

"I..." she began, only to pause and put a hand on her chin. "...Y'know, I can't remember. The first thing that comes to mind was... I think a little bit before I bumped into him-" she indicated Roy. "-in the gym. I saw a few people runnin' around, but they all got away before I could ask 'em anything."

Yukiko blinked in surprise. "Oh... was that you calling out then?"

Roy's eyes narrowed. "...Metis, you happen to know the time when we went in?"

"...Twelve-fourteen pm."

"Rusei, I don't suppose you had a look at the clock before your team jumped in, did you?"

"Ten past noon." Yosuke answered. "A sale started up in housewares right as we got to the TV we usually use. Had to wait out a few customers still around in electronics."

Mitsuru hummed. "...Only a four minute gap in our entry time... And Labrys herself could have been on this side for as long as thirty-six hours."

Chie scratched her head. "Where was she before she got thrown in?"

"As far as we were aware at the time, inactive in storage at Kagoshima. If she was still active while in containment, however..."

"Then why'd her dungeon look like our high school?" asked the martial artist. "Even if she was awake before getting thrown in, a how'd she know enough about Yasogami High to copy it so well here?"

"I'd been wondering that myself." continued the Kirijo heiress. "Putting aside that Inaba was the escape destination, why was a specific school so carefully recreated? And even if she was conscious enough to use her abilities, her power doesn't 'rob one's sanity', it merely clouds one's senses with illusions. It's highly unlikely she could have used it to manipulate a group of people into stealing her away with a complex plan..."

Akihiko shifted, turning his head. "Hey, Labrys."

She didn't answer him.

"Hey!" he repeated, stepping towards her. "Are you paying-"

His words stopped abruptly when she twitched the moment he put a hand on her shoulder. In an instant, he ducked under a heavy, backhanded strike before she started stepping away from the group. Her expression was blank.

"What the hell!?"

"Sister!?"

Akihiko threw out his arms. "Stay back!"

" _It's not over yet..."_ said an eerie voice, emanating from Labrys instead of her own.

"What...!? It's the same communication system as ours!"

"The fuck have you done to these things in the past two years!?" Roy asked, stepping back and carefully laying Aigis down near Rise. "Cuz 'hijack robot girls' wasn't something in the instruction manual you gave me!"

Metis tensed, brandishing her staff. "Something's blocking me... I can't connect to her! The signal..." her eyes went wide. "It's not coming from this side!"

"Then that would make you the mastermind, wouldn't it?" Rusei inquired, already poised to strike at a moment's notice.

The voice laughed, Labrys' body jerking slightly as if a puppet on strings. Her head lifted, her once red eyes now dull and gray.

" _Well, it's not as if this test unit could get in here on her own."_ replied the voice, Labrys' mouth moving to give form to the words. _"But there's still something to be taken care of before I'm done with her. Now..."_ The manipulated girl reached for her axe, pointing it towards the group. _"The blonde and the bear... hand them over."_

Roy's body tensed, shifting slightly to put himself between Labrys and Aigis.

"We'll do no such thing!" retorted Mitsuru.

The Eerie voice laughed again, the lack of expression on her face making the sight incredibly unnerving.

" _I figured you'd say that. Oh well, guess we'll have to do it the hard way..."_

As Labrys lunged, so to did one of the Persona Users. Voices rang out in confusion as the sound of the silver haired girl's axe striking metal filled the air.

" _...Faster than you look."_ noted the voice. _"Would've expected that Norimoto guy to make a move before you did."_

Roy smirked, then pushed back and swung his other arm out. On contact with Labrys' axe, the weapon simply vanished, sending the manipulated girl off balance. The redhead took two steps back, tucking the card he'd shoved the weapon in into his vest. When Labrys regained her balance, her head slowly turned to look at her now-empty hand before facing Roy again.

" _And trickier than I'd heard. Roy Fortune, right?"_

"Guilty as charged, now get out of her head." said the Wild Card, anger creeping into the edges of his voice.

The voice scoffed. _"Sorry, I need a puppet. And even without her axe..."_ Labrys' stance shifted into one more fitting a hand to hand combat style, and blue flame erupted around her feet. _"She's still got a Persona. Now, entertain me!"_

Before even Roy could react, a black blur shot past him to meet Labrys' sudden charge.

"MY SISTER IS NOT YOUR TOY!" Metis roared, her staff impacting the side of her puppeted sister's arm as the voice forced Labrys to block.

The silver maiden attempted to retaliate with Ariadne, only to be forced back by Psyche.

"...You got this?"

The black haired girl nodded in response to Roy's question, her Persona now floating behind her.

" _Hmm. Should be interesting to see how these two stack up..."_ commented the voice before rushing in for another attack.

"H-Hey, shouldn't we be helping her!?" asked Kanji, looking away from the fight between Metis and the manipulated Labrys.

Roy shook his head. "Not a good idea. Most of us are banged up, and every paranoid bone in my body says there's still more to this..."

A massive gust of wind drew the two Persona User's attention back to the fight. Ariadne and Psyche were locked in a clash of power; the former commanded an endless, crimson thread that was currently shaped into a bull, struggling against a maelstrom of wind and ice that heeded the call of the latter. It was plain to tell that while Ariadne was exceptionally powerful even with how recently it had awoken, Psyche was steadily gaining ground. Even when Labrys' persona suddenly vanished and the silver haired girl rushed her sister, it quickly became a standstill as Metis found herself fighting over the staff she carried.

" _Huh. Better result than I'd expected out of a test model against a later version..."_ commented the voice, even as it forced Labrys to try and take Metis' weapon. _"I wonder what would happen if I pushed farther...?"_

The dark haired ASU's brow furrowed. The casual indifference of the voice using her sister as a speaker was becoming infuriating. Rather than respond, however, blue flame erupted at her feet... and slowly tinted pink, the tips of the flames taking shapes that resembled butterflies. The sudden shift caught the puppeteer's attention, presenting Metis an easy opening to press the advantage her Neo Orgia Mode was going to give her. In seconds, she had Labrys pinned to the ground in a hold her sister couldn't break free of.

"Give me back my sister!" barked Metis.

A sigh. _"That's right, newer models have features Labrys wouldn't... Oh well."_

"Don't 'oh well' me! And while you're at it, why do you want Aigis!?"

" _Hmm... Don't feel like sharing that part, even if you did get the better of me this time."_ remarked the Eerie Voice.

Rusei shifted. "Wonderful... this won't be the last we hear of you."

The voice laughed. _"Not likely! Even if I don't have a Persona, there's more than one way to run amok."_

" **After all, with a partially awakened Persona a small amount of suffering was all that would be needed to produce a Shadow from that one..."**

The Shadow Operatives and Investigation Team tensed, watching the area as they closed ranks around Rise and Aigis.

"Wh-What is this... ominous feeling...?" asked Rise.

Akihiko's eyes darted back and forth. "I'm more worried about that voice... it sounded like..."

"Me." noted Roy, his gaze focused upon something that had sprung up a little behind Labrys.

It was a mass of what seemed to be black blood, in a perfect circle on the ground. After a moment, something began to rise from the sludge... something that made the blood of everyone present run cold.

" **I knew steps would have to be taken with the Jailer of Erebus involved, but it would seem I hadn't accounted for all possibilities."** remarked the doppelganger of Roy, its arms crossed. **"Least of all his apparent resistance to our puppet's abilities..."**

"Is that... Roy's Shadow...!?"

The redhead scoffed. "Nah... Kwaku Anansi's still in my head. That's just a shitty knock-off, probably made by a god if it knows that title of mine."

" **Perhaps, perhaps not."** remarked the 'Shadow'. **"I'll be taking things from here."**

" _I was wondering if you'd show up..."_ commented the voice. _"Guess I'll leave the rest to you for now, if you think you can salvage things..."_

Labrys went limp in Metis' hands, the dark haired gynoid shutting down her Orgia Mode before she began to overheat.

"Labrys!?"

" **-Still has a part to play."**

The silver haired girl threw Metis off her, quickly rising to her feet and turning towards the group of Persona Users.

"Oh come on!"

The doppelganger of Roy laughed manically. **"Your suffering is not yet over! I will see you relinquish your Personas!"**

"The hell are you talking about!?" Kanji demanded.

" **It shouldn't be hard to grasp... Personas and Shadows are one and the same. Just as a Shadow can become a Persona, so to can the reverse occur... The heart is such a frail thing, after all."** It grinned. **"Its weaknesses are never fully vanquished, and old wounds thought overcome can return you to darkness... This one's desire to make people suffer was perfectly suited to such a task."**

Roy glanced over his shoulder for a moment. "...So I take it you're the whose done something to Aigis."

" **Perhaps."** said the 'Shadow', flicking his wrist. Labrys' body jerked, taking up a combative stance once again. **"I have need of her regardless, and this little puppet will be wonderful for retrieving her..."**

"Sorry, but this show is over." Mitsuru said sharply. "Yamagishi!"

All of a sudden, Labrys went limp and crumpled to the ground.

 _(Are you all okay!?)_

Roy let out a tired laugh. "Just in the nick of time, Fuuka..."

"Ha... you really came prepared for anything, Mitsuru..." Akihiko remarked.

"Is this... like Rise-chan's Persona!?" asked Chie, looking around. "Wait, where is she!?"

"This feeling... what the...?" Rise looked up. "That voice... She's not in here, she's on the other side!"

Yosuke's eyes went wide. "Wait, she can reach HERE from the real world!? Holy shit!"

The 'Shadow' hummed. **"Impressive... another facet I had not accounted for. To think a mortal could interfere from so far away..."**

"Speaking of facets!" began Roy. "You wanted us to relinquish Personas, right? OKAY~!"

Kwaku Anansi rocketed at the Malevolent Entity at breakneck speed, knocking the doppelganger off its feet with a massive punch.

"Oh wait, you probably didn't want your jaw knocked off when you said that..." hummed the redhead, starting to stride towards the entity. "Eh, too late now."

Both Akihiko and Mitsuru had their eyes trained on Roy. It wasn't the first time they'd heard him talk so casually in the face of a dangerous opponent, but it was the first time they'd heard genuine hatred in his voice as he did so.

"I was already pissed someone was forcing my friends to fight each other by about the second round of that tournament..." Roy continued, blue flame flaring up around his entire body as he walked. "But now that I know just full on what you did and what you wanted from it? I'm just gonna beat the shit out of you till you stop."

The entity scoffed, rising to its feet. **"Bold words, even for someone who bested a god..."**

Roy's rebuttal was a fist to the doppelganger's face, and in an instant it was full on brawl between the two of them. It wasn't hard to keep track of the real Roy in the scuffle – he looked like he'd been through hell, and most of the Investigation Team was wondering how he was still standing, let alone fighting. Of course, not everyone was simply content to watch...

The entity ducked under a kick from Roy, only to be then met with a flash of lightning and Akihiko's fist directly in its face. It skidded along the ground, quickly regaining its footing only to be immediately beset by a flurry of ice from Artemisia. It unleashed a replica of Kwaku Anansi to burn away the ice, a disdainful smirk on its face.

" **Pack mentality? Do you have so little faith in your precious Jailer that-"** Its words were silenced by an a sudden hammer strike across its face, the Malevolent Entity sliding along the ground again as Metis stepped back.

"No, I think we all just agree with what he said..." stated the Anti-Shadow Unit.

Akihiko rushed forward, lightning arcing around his hands as he bolted past Metis and went into a dizzying flurry of punches, driving the entity even further back till one mighty haymaker sent the doppelganger flying again.

"Gonna keep hitting you till you stop." stated the boxer.

As the entity attempted to stand once again, it was instantly assaulted by Roy. It wasn't many solid hits, but at least one was grabbing the entity by the face and slamming his knee into it, then throwing the disoriented lookalike across the figurative room... only for it to be smashed into the ground by Takejizaiten's titanic fist.

"Don't mind if I crash the party, do ya Big Red?" Kanji asked, stepping forward with the chair he'd brought from the fake Yasogami gym in hand.

The entity called forth its own Anansi once again, flames ripping across the battlefield towards the Persona Users. The inferno didn't quite reach its target, however, as Sumeo-Okami's command over fire snuffed out the attack.

" **Hmm."** It looked at the now steadily approaching group of people very intent on obliterating it, though it still seemed rather sure of itself. **"If one does not suffice, then use more till victory is achieved..."** The Malevolent Entity shifted in place, its copy of Anansi looming behind it. **"If only it were truly so simple for-"**

Its voice was silenced by Tsukuyomi Otoko suddenly materializing in front of it, grasping it by the face with one hand.

"And you talk too much." Rusei remarked dryly, flicking his hand slightly.

At its summoners command, the Moon God turned and threw the entity towards the nearest cluster of Persona Users as the names of its fellow divinities were bellowed by its allies.

Yamato Sumeragi and Takehaya Susano-o struck in tandem with Yukiko, a flurry of slashing blades, blistering flames, and scything winds carving into the doppelganger.

Once the whirling inferno spat it out, the Malevolent Entity was punted by Chie directly into the waiting fists of Akihiko, Kanji, and their Personas. A veritable power substation's worth of electricity coursed through its body, even going so far as to disrupt its duplication of Roy in a way that, in retrospect after the battle, was akin to an alternate color palette in a fighting game.

The final punch from both fist fighters sent the entity sliding into range of Mitsuru and Metis, precise thrusts of the former's rapier striking between the heavy blows of the latter's hammer and the ice abilities of their Personas. A point-blank blast of wind from Psyche launched the doppelganger to the next leg of its exceptionally painful journey.

Ice encased the entity's lower body at Kamui-Moshiri's command, abruptly stopping it in front of Rusei Norimoto. The Wild Card wasted no time in lashing out with his sword, Tsukuyomi Otoko mirroring his attacks till finally blasting the Malevolent Entity into the air with a mighty explosion of light.

Not one to be left out, even if she had only just regained consciousness, Labrys' arm rocketed towards the airborne enemy, grabbing it by the leg and yanking the doppelganger back towards the ground. Roy sprinted towards where it was going to land at the direction of both Rise and Fuuka, unaware that Labrys wasn't the only one to have woken up. With a furious scream, the redhead and Kwaku Anansi slammed their fists into the monster wearing Roy's face, crushing it against Athena's shield as the stalwart goddess heeded Aigis' call.

The Malevolent Entity's shattered form was thrown to one side by Athena, a few sickening cracks heralding its impact with the ground on the far side of the plaza. It didn't move, the only sounds in the air being the breathing of the nearly spent members of the Investigation Team and Shadow Operatives.

"Did... we get it...?" asked Chie, watching the motionless impostor.

In spite of the damage it had just taken, the entity began to laugh, slowly pushing itself to its feet. Yet even as it rose, it was plain to see it was insanely unlikely for it to attack again. There was no mistaking its broken body, chiefly being one of its legs and one of its arms bending at angles that would be, if not fatal for a human, incomprehensibly painful.

" **Good... I can accept this result..."** it remarked, black 'blood' leaking from its mouth. **"Your power... it exceeds my expectations! Yes... this will be most excellent for my purposes."** It spat out some of the 'blood'. **"Even with the irritation of feigning cooperation with that foolish human, I shall have the one true vessel..."** A smile curled onto its mangled visage. **"I shall see you again, in another guise. Just wait until then..."**

Kwaku Anansi launched towards the Malevolent Entity, but before it could land a punch the doppelganger simply disappeared, the Persona's attack going through empty air.

"Yamagishi!"

 _(It didn't move, it just... vanished...)_

Akihiko sighed. "Back to square one..."

"It even left on a lame line... 'I'll get you next time'!" Yosuke said, attempting to do a mocking imitation of the entity's voice. "What's next, Featherman crashing in to save the day...?"

"Worry about it later when everything doesn't hurt." sighed Roy, staggering over to Aigis. "Nice timing there at the end, darling."

She smiled weakly, letting her boyfriend lean on her shoulder. "I try my best."

"How can I not worry about this!?" Rise demanded. "This is twice I've been kidnapped into the TV world, you know!" She held up two fingers for emphasis. "TWICE! And this time it's by some sneaky jerk shapeshifter thing!"

"I'm curious as to its identity, and that of its associate..." remarked Naoto. "They knew of both Roy-san and Rusei... and are likely the source of how Labrys' shadow was able to manifest a perfect copy of Yasogami High."

Kanji scoffed. "Well if I get my hands on either of 'em, I'm gonna make the ass beating that fake just got look like a pillow fight!"

"Don't worry about it. We'll handle things from here."

Roy slowly turned his head to look at Akihiko. "If you think that will stop these guys, you're actually crazier than I am."

The boxer laughed. "I meant the 'finding the enemy' side of things. These clowns picked a fight with everyone here and then some, they've gotta deal with that choice."

"Akihiko!"

"Let's... discuss this another time." stated Rusei, taking a step forward. "We're all exhausted, and well... getting out is going to be something of an issue with a group this large."

Awkward looks were exchanged amongst the group save for Teddie, who simply hummed and tapped his heel on the ground.

"Ta-daaa~!" he sang as a stack of TVs appeared from a puff of smoke. "One Teddie-vision Exit Door, ready to go~!"

"...There's still, what...?" Yosuke began counting heads. "...Fourteen of us. That's a pretty big group to suddenly come out of electronics all at once, especially well..." he glanced at Akihiko, Mitsuru, Metis, and Labrys. "...Them."

"I mean you're not wrong, but don't worry!" said Roy, a tired grin on his face. "Just jump through and run like hell, easy game! You're a fast guy, Aki. You'll be fine."

The boxer sighed. "I can't tell who's worse sometimes, you or Hamuko..."

"Hey, uh... what happened to my axe...?" asked Labrys, having finally noticed it wasn't anywhere to be found.

"I have it, don't worry. You'll get it back when we're not going through a public place."

She gave Roy a confused look. "...What, did ya shove it up your nose? It's huge!"

"No, it's in this." he held up the card it was in. "But again, leaving first, axe later."

* * *

Somehow, both the Investigation Team and Shadow Operatives made their way out of the TV World and Junes without major issue. The evening that followed saw the Shadow Operatives more properly consolidate what information they had on the day's events, though a fair portion of that was both Metis and Roy fussing over Aigis' condition. By the blonde's admission, the only lasting difference seemed to be her complete lack of capability to tap into the Wild Card abilities she had, for a time, shared with Roy. Anything beyond that would require a more serious medical check-up once they returned to Iwatodai. Of course, they also had to explain to Labrys how she and Aigis were in fact siblings, despite the latter's far more human condition.

"...So, in tryin' ta keep Roy from being dead... some a his leftover power from savin' the world turned you human?"

"For... lack of a better description, yes."

Labrys stared at Aigis, then slowly turned to at Roy. "You better take responsibility if somethin' happens!"

The statement caused Roy to almost inhale the water he was drinking, in turn leading to a small coughing fit.

"I'd be surprised if he didn't..." Ryoji commented, fighting back the urge to just start laughing.

"He won't have just Labrys to worry about if he doesn't..."

Aigis turned towards Metis, her face turning a similar shade of red as Roy's hair. "Metis!"

"What, I'm not allowed to play the protective big sister card?" she asked innocently.

The blonde grumbled, shoving her sister a little and earning a few chuckles from the rest of the Operatives in the room.

"...Hey, Mitsuru-san?"

The redhead's gaze moved to face Labrys.

"...Do you... think we could say goodbye to those other guys before we leave tomorrow?" asked the silver haired ASU, a pleading look in her eyes. "We didn't really get the chance before we had to get goin' today..."

A soft sigh escaped Mitsuru. "I don't see why we couldn't..."

"Wouldn't be a bad idea to swap contact information with 'em anyways." remarked Akihiko. "Even if it's just to see if something strange happened, keeping in touch with a few more Persona Users could come in handy."

"...I would prefer to keep them out of things if at all possible." said the Kirijo Heiress. "They shouldn't have to get involved in something like this after everything they've been through."

Roy laughed, finally done coughing. "I wasn't kidding when I said there's no way they'll stay out of this. Even if this kicked off because of a couple assholes coming after Kirijo Group stuff, it still dragged them into it with no small amount of effort... and the guy who was hijacking Labrys mentioned Norimoto by name."

"Which isn't that strange if you think about it." noted Fuuka, looking up from her laptop. "Both of his parents work for the Kirijo Group, and if that person has access to equipment from the Group, it wouldn't be a big stretch to think they have other information. It might even be what lead them out to Inaba in the first place."

"That... is a scary good point." Ryoji agreed. "If it didn't know about the TV World out here at all, it'd have needed to find a different way to wake up Labrys, and probably would've come after just all of us who were in SEES instead of the Investigation Team... and then there's that whole 'harvesting Shadows' thing it was going on about, and we all know what happens when people do THAT..."

The room fell silent, the veterans of SEES vividly recalling different moments from their struggles to eradicate the Dark Hour.

"...Once we've confirmed Labrys and Aigis' conditions, finding the thief and his accomplice should be our top priority." stated Mitsuru. "I may have to send out a request for our reserve members to assist if things escalate..."

"That's... a pretty sharp curve there, Senpai."

"I know, but... the Entity that copied your appearance hardly seemed phased even with the severe injuries it sustained." Mitsuru sighed. "But that might also been the exhaustion of the day finally catching up with me..."

Ryoji nodded. "Probably best you guys all sleep on it."

"Yeah... but hey, if you don't wanna sleep, I have a poker deck and-"

"NO."

Roy pouted. "Spoil sports..."

* * *

While the sudden request for a gathering surprised the Investigation Team, none of them failed to make it the next day. It was slightly odd, the two groups of Persona Users standing beside a limousine at an intersection off the main road out of Inaba.

"So what's next for you?" asked Yosuke, looking towards Labrys.

The red-eyed girl smiled. "Gonna help Mitsuru-san and them catch the guy who did all that to me."

"And once we have that sorted, I'M going back on vacation!" added Roy. "So you guys better brace yourself for summer, I'm coming to visit and you can't stop me!"

Yukiko laughed. "I doubt we could even if we wanted to try."

"I'll keep my schedule open around then... Just make sure you give me a time frame to work with!"

"Yeah yeah, don't you worry Kujikawa... I'd like to think I know what I'm doing."

Mitsuru sighed, shaking her head as she stepped into the car. One by one the Shadow Operatives followed, Labrys waving out the back window as the limousine drove away.

A sigh escaped Rusei once the vehicle was out of sight.

"...So." he began, turning towards his friends. "I don't suppose it'd be too bold of me to ask for some assistance with a matter that came to my attention recently..."

Kanji narrowed his eyes. "...How recently?"

"I believe you're all in some ways aware of it." noted the Wild Card. "It's not every day something troublesome happens involving the Midnight Channel, after all..."

* * *

Roy sighed as he leaned back in his chair at the Kirijo Group lab later on that day. Aigis and Labrys were both having tests run on them, and he was just... waiting in the hall. A door opening drew his attention, a familiar face stepping out.

"I figured you hadn't left." remarked Tenshi Kirijo, approaching the redhead.

"I worry." he remarked, sitting up straighter. "How're they doing?"

Tenshi smiled. "Structural damage on Labrys is heavy, but far from critical. There's a maintenance team starting work on the repairs, though she's a little anxious to get moving again..." Her expression fell slightly. "As for Aigis... It's strange."

"...Strange how?"

"We've done a large amount of tests on her since her metamorphosis in the Abyss of Time, and they all said she was fine, the oddity of having a Plume of Dusk melded to her heart aside." began the elder Kirijo. "Now? It seems that whatever dregs of the power that caused her to change have... either run out or 'finished' the process."

The redhead gave the scientist a curious look. "...'Finished'? She was perfectly fine until we got into the other side from what she told me."

"Based on the test we'd preformed last month, that would be correct." said Tenshi. "After this one, it's... well, she isn't mechanical again, it's just that her body now displays characteristics that resemble her previous state as a machine. It's almost as if she's hit a sort of perfect balance between both states, the more human physical leanings aside."

"But is she gonna be okay?"

Tenshi nodded, though her expression was uneasy. "We can't find anything physically wrong with her, despite our equipment suggesting interfacing with her electronically would be entirely possible. It's... surreal to think that something that should only happen in the realm of science fiction is actually happening..."

"And you say this after personally making the AI for two series of robots to fight monsters."

She laughed. "I'm aware of how close to hypocritical it sounds, but... it's the reality we're in now. We have her doing some simple fitness tests to see if there's been any other changes to her physical abilities, but if nothing's wrong, then I see no reason to keep her confined."

"Well, you'd know better than me if that was a good idea..." sighed Roy, standing up. "I'm just glad she's okay."

"Heading home now that your mind's at ease?"

The Wild Card laughed. "No, I'll wait to know if she gets to come home tonight or not."

"I see..." she glanced at her watch. "...The tests should be finished in about a half hour, and if anything happens I made sure the staff knew to alert you. Maybe getting some food would be a good idea instead of just waiting here."

"...Probably."

"And may I ask you for a favor, Fortune?"

Roy gave her a curious look as the two of them started walking down the hall. "What sort of favor?"

"...I'd appreciate it if you could show Labrys around Iwatodai." said the elder redhead. "Once this incident is resolved in full, of course."

He smiled. "Well, I can think of worse things to do on vacation then spend time with my girlfriend and her older sister..."

* * *

"Have you finished your preparations?"

A young man with red hair turned, an almost bored look on his face. "Everything I can do, yeah. I still need those pawns you promised. Hard to set the board without all the pieces, y'know?" he grinned. "Unless you wanna play checkers instead!"

A heavy sigh. "There will be time aplenty for amusement once our goals have been realized."

The redhead seemed to think about that statement, then shrugged. "True. Once we're done, I'll be the only thing left! All these shitty people with their shitty lives will disappear from this shitty world."

"Indeed."

* * *

 **Author Notes -** One game down, one more to go. Onward to Ultimax's plot we go! And since I promised them, here's the names of the Instant Kill attacks for Rusei, Roy, and Metis;

Rusei - Lunar Reading (The name of his Myriad Truths equivalent that he beat Izanami with)

Roy - Weight of the World (Seen in this chapter, no less!)

Metis - Olympian Banisher (Ever wanted to see some poor sap hit so hard with a hammer they flash froze while rocketing into low earth orbit?)


	5. Sound of the Beast

Pre-Chapter Review Answer Corner GO!

 **Cody the Worldwalker** \- 'Ass whooping 2.0' does not even begin to cover what kind of pain train the final boss of Ultimax has coming. Sho doesn't get off much better, either... there's a few good reasons I call the Stacked Deck version of the Arena story 'Sho Minazuki's Bogus Journey to the Hospital' in my planned notes for chapters.

And now, on with the chapter!

* * *

The fifth of May was, to the annoyance of some of the Shadow Operatives, mostly uneventful. While not terrible, as it gave the team performing maintenance on Labrys more time to work, the events of the third were weighing on the minds of some of the Persona Users. When they gathered in one of their conference rooms to discuss the situation, it was easy to tell who was the most bothered among them.

"Please tell me you've got something new..." Roy asked as he sat down. "The sooner we get the jump on that kidnapper duo, the better it'll be for my blood pressure..."

"That's exactly what I'd hoped to discuss." stated Mitsuru, turning towards Fuuka a moment later. "You said you'd finished your examination of Labrys' memory?"

The teal haired girl nodded, but her expression didn't inspire confidence. "I did. Unfortunately... I couldn't find anything that could help us. Whoever abducted her knew enough to cover their tracks. We'll have to wait for a report from Intelligence if we want to pursue them, but it seems that might take some time."

"Meaning we have no clues to work with right now..." Metis noted grimly.

"So it would seem..." Mitsuru said, an oddly impatient edge to her voice that wasn't lost on a few of her associates.

"...Something else wrong?" Roy asked.

The Kirijo Heiress hesitated before answering. "...Ever since that hijacking, we've learned that the Public Safety division has been making some disquieting moves. If we don't make a move of our own soon, there's no telling what they'll do to take advantage of the situation. We have to find a lead before they do anything..."

Ryoji hummed. "One thing at a time. First, run me through things again so I can make sure I'm not remembering this wrong... This started with the hijacking, right?"

"Correct."

"What happened to the guys who pulled it off? Roy, Aigis, and Metis captured them, right?"

The redhead paused, opening a file in her hand and flipping through a few documents in it. "...That's also correct. At this point, we have reason to believe that their minds were being controlled." her eyes widened as she read one of the documents. "...Those who hijacked the airplane and transported the case testified to having no memory of taking part in the crime. They didn't recognize one another, had nothing in common, and were all ordinary citizens with no prior criminal records."

"That's... spooky." noted Roy.

"Quite... what's more is the one thing all their testimonies had in common." continued Mitsuru. "They all claim to have seen 'red eyes' before their recollections drifted till they were in police custody. It would seem the interrogations are still ongoing, but I doubt it will be long before they're released."

Akihiko leaned back in his seat. "And the culprit waited until he made it to Inaba to turn Labrys on and play around with her memory, then threw her into the TV World."

"Said TV World being the Collective Unconscious of humanity, where thoughts and memories manifest." stated Roy, leaning forward with one arm on the table. "Then they somehow fed enough info to Labrys to shape her mental landscape into Yasogami High, just letting things play out so she was bait for the Tournament to trap Persona Users..."

"Which included the Inaba Investigation Team, headed by Rusei Norimoto." Aigis noted. "With two of their members being actively kidnapped – Rise Kujikawa, likely due to her Persona's similar capabilities to Juno, and Teddie Kumada, who is a... rather unique entity as a Shadow who later gained a Persona."

Mitsuru bit her lip lightly before she spoke up again. "And the one who was directly manipulating Labrys wanted both Kumada and Aigis, going so far as to demand they be turned over to them."

"While his pal said he wanted to turn our Personas back into Shadows and harvest them, and we all know where amassing Shadows goes..." said Roy.

"Yeah, really terrible places." Ryoji commented with a shiver. "But... It might just be me remembering things wrong, but... doesn't this all sound a lot like-"

"-The machinations of Shuji Ikutsuki?"

Roy's body tensed as his gaze shifted towards Aigis.

"...The puppeteer's manner of speaking did resemble Ikutsuki's from the night of his betrayal." Mitsuru noted darkly. "But it's impossible for that to be him – We've confirmed his death twice over."

"There were still those scientists who went missing after he turned on us... Did we ever find out what happened to them?"

Ryoji made a so-so gesture in response to Akihiko's question. "Kinda? A bunch of 'em set up that Nyx cult with Takaya at the head and got caught after the Dark Hour ended..." he turned towards Mitsuru. "Was it ever confirmed all of them were put in jail after that?"

"...I don't remember off-hand, sadly." replied the heiress. "But it does give us something resembling a lead to work with now." Mitsuru looked over at Fuuka. "Yamagishi, when Labrys awakens, can you give her a summary of the case from three years ago?"

"Way ahead of you there, I pulled out a spare copy of my Journal for that." said Roy, producing the item in question. "She's probably a fast reader like Aigis and Metis anyways."

"Can't you just stick that into her memory as like a text file?"

Metis shook her head. "No, she'd never realize she knew it unless someone outright told her. While your suggestion would technically be better, our design makes that approach much less effective."

"That reminds me, Kirijo-san asked me to help look over Labrys' memory field and we found something surprising." said Fuuka. "The makeup of hers is slightly different from Metis' or the blueprint records for Aigis – besides the memory area she normally accesses, there seems to be a sub-network of some sort. Kirijo-san said it was most likely to incorporate the feedback of her sibling units."

"In that case, it would definitely be best to tell Labrys of SEES' activities directly." noted Aigis.

Mitsuru hummed. "Then giving Labrys that copy of Roy's Journal will suffice. As to the... possibility of accomplices of Ikutsuki's, another item of interest that was retrieved from Ergo Research before Labrys' container was a quarantined server. It took us a long time to find it due to it being cut off from the network, meaning it most likely has information considered top-secret and thus would've normally never left the Ergo facility..."

"I'm guessing you think Ikutsuki and or his pals know what's on that server?" asked Roy.

"Indeed. We'll be having a meeting at headquarters tomorrow to discuss-"

An alarm sudden began to blare, interrupting the conversation. Mitsuru near immediately hit one of the intercom buttons on the panel near her seat at the table.

"What's going on!?"

 _["The surveillance system detected a rise in Shadow readings. It's currently stabilizing around a Level Three alert, located in Inaba."]_

"Damn, things are already kicking off?" asked Ryoji, rising from his seat. "Looks like we might need to get a move on, Mitsuru-san."

"Indeed..." the redhead pressed a different button on the panel. "Kikuno, my team and I will be heading out. We'll be leaving Labrys in your care."

Roy held up a hand. "Uh, who's on the first response team? Because I feel like sending all of us with only Labrys to fall back on might not go well."

Mitsuru paused, then sighed and pressed the button again. "Correction, Labrys will be in the care of you and a few others. The agents remaining will be bringing her to assist us once she awakens."

 _["Understood, Lady Mitsuru."]_

"But really, who's going first?" asked Ryoji.

"Besides myself, that depends on all of you." answered the redhead.

"I'll hang back this time, then." Roy said. "I'd like to think I'm good at getting across the situation quickly, so once Labrys is up we can just get rolling."

Akihiko chuckled. "And here I was expecting you to insist Aigis hang back..."

"Hey, if the experts say she's fine and she says she's fine, I'm gonna listen."

Aigis lightly shook her head. "And he couldn't stop me even if he wanted to. I'll accompany you, Mitsuru-san."

"I'm in for the first wave as well." Ryoji said. "If nothing else I probably make a really good deterrent if that thing that copied Roy is in any way divine."

Metis nodded. "He has a point. I'd like to make sure Labrys is okay myself, so I'll stay back as well."

"I'll support the first team." stated Fuuka, earning a slightly concerned look from Ryoji.

"You sure, dearest? You're technically not on the official payroll..."

The teal haired girl nodded. "I'm not going to do nothing while some monster tries to hurt my friends."

"Alright. Just stick close if a fight breaks out..."

Mitsuru laughed lightly. "Very well. Let's get moving."

The Shadow Operatives nodded, all rising from the table and setting about their preparations.

* * *

After Mitsuru's team left, Roy had wandered his way over to where Labrys was. The physical maintenance was finished shortly after that, what remained was the system checks and updates before the reawakened her. Kikuno, Mitsuru's maid, was assisting another individual called in to assist with the situation following the hijacking.

"Hovering won't make this go any faster, you know."

"Yeah, but it's better than burning through my phone's battery playing games on it." said Roy, taking a seat. "So what all are you even doing to her now?"

"Database updates, mostly." Jin Shirato answered, eyes focused on the screen in front of him. "Personnel roster, access codes, improved self-diagnostic tools... Everything software-wise is almost twelve years out of date for her."

Roy whistled. "Yikes..."

"Shirato-san."

Jin looked over to his left at Kikuno.

"I found something I feel we should inform Lady Mitsuru's team of." reported the maid, indicating her screen.

"Oh yeah?" the persona user slid his chair over to read what it said. After a few moments, his eyes went wide. "Holy... Yeah, summarize the important details and let them know. It might be important."

Roy gave Jin an odd look as the latter moved back over to the monitor for Labrys' systems.

"What'd it say?"

"It would seem one of the experiments at Ergo Research involved a Plume of Dusk." reported Kikuno.

"Isn't that what lets the ASUs function at all?"

The maid nodded. "Correct. There's also mention of human experimentation..."

"...Oh that's... Mm." Roy's expression twisted into one of disgust. "That's messed up."

"Tell me about it." remarked Jin, still going about his work on Labrys. "Kikuno, once you have that sent off go get some transport ready. Don't rush it, there's still time on the data upload."

"Understood."

The redhead looked between the two, then over at the peacefully resting Labrys.

"...Hell of a first few days of real consciousness after twelve years." he remarked, standing up. "I'm gonna go check in with Metis."

"Come back when you're done, you're in charge of the exposition once she wakes up." Jin said over his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I know."

* * *

"Alright, we have them. The pawns in place?"

 **"Of course."**

"Heheh, then I guess it's Sho time!

* * *

Labrys jolted awake, her eyes snapping open. She looked around, slightly dazed by the surreal dream she'd been having.

"Good, you're finally up and running..."

"Yeah, they're all like that. Just get the wires on that side!"

The silver haired girl slowly looked around, seeing an unfamiliar man in a black suit and Roy hustling around her, unplugging the wires from the terminal she was connected to. It took her a moment to register some manner of alert siren blaring.

"What the...?"

"Shit's fucked, that's what!" exclaimed Roy, pulling free the last of the wires. "Can you move?"

Labrys nodded, eyeing the stranger cautiously. "...Yeah... but who's this?"

"Officer Kurosawa, old friend of ours." The redhead suddenly looked towards the door. "Metis, how we doing?"

"No sign yet, but we should hurry. It can't take them long to get here..." reported the dark haired ASU. "Jin-san should already be on the roof by now."

"The heck is going on? Are we under attack?"

Kurosawa nodded quickly. "Short version is there's an emergency. Mitsuru Kirijo's car has gone missing, along with everyone in it."

"And apparently Public Safety jumped at the chance to get at us with her gone." remarked Roy, hurrying over to the door and looking out the opposite side Metis was facing. "...Clear this way, let's move!"

Labrys followed her sister and the two humans in a bit of confusion. Her database said Public Safety was on their side, and that by all accounts the lab they were in was completely unknown to ordinary people.

"Why are they attacking us at all!?" she asked as the group finally reached a staircase, quickly slipping through the door.

Roy immediately ran his hands over both the door's hinges and the handle, a layer of ice forming on them.

"I think that story might have to wait till we catch our ride out of here, and this won't hold long if they catch up..."

Labrys looked at the door, then up the stairwell. A pang of dread shot through her, but she quickly shook it off and looked at Kurosawa. "Right, then ya wanna take a shortcut, officer?"

"What shortcut?" asked the Detective, quickly finding himself picked up by the mechanical maiden, who near immediately took off like a rocket, the boosters on her axe propelling her as she deftly leapt up the stairwell.

Both Roy and Metis sighed, then began to follow as best they could. Lacking jets, they had to make do with creative use of their Personas capabilities. At the top, they find Kurosawa gasping for breath as he opens the door to the roof. The sound of a helicopter fills the air, the wind whipping around as the group piles out of the staircase.

"Kurosawa, can you hold down the fort here?" Roy half-shouted, holding up a hand to keep the wind out of his face.

"I can't exactly do much in the battle you guys are walking into!" replied the detective as he shut the door behind them. "I'm gonna have to trust you can pull your friends out of whatever happened to them!"

Metis turned back as she was halfway to the helicopter. "Come on! We gotta go!"

The sound of a dog barking followed as Roy and Labrys darted to follow Metis, both practically leaping into the vehicle before it began to ascend once more.

"GUN IT, KIKUNO-SAN!"

"Roger that!"

The helicopter began to rapidly escape into the night sky, Labrys and Roy looking back in time to see what looked like a Swat team storming the roof.

A sigh filled the air as the side door was closed.

"Looks like we managed to get away..." remarked a young man, an albino shiba inu sitting on his lap.

"Given how secretive it all is, that's probably because they couldn't shoot at us without causing a scene..." noted another passenger, her surprisingly bright pink garb standing out compared to the rest of the interior.

Roy arched an eyebrow when he saw the girl in pink. "...What, you didn't even have time to change before they picked up Ken?"

"I didn't exactly grab a spare set of clothes before I hopped on!" Yukari protested. "It was short notice!"

"Better than nothing, at least..." commented Metis as she walked towards the front of the helicopter. "So what's the whole situation? Kurosawa-san couldn't give us everything."

Jin sighed from the co-pilot seat, leaning his head back. "You got the big point about Kirijo's Limo disappearing, right?"

"Yeah, but what about those guys who were swarmin' the place?" asked Labrys, tapping the side of her head as she tried to think. "What'd Roy call 'em... Public Safety?"

"Right. Well, bluntly put, they don't like us. We're supposed to be on the same side, but with Kirijo vanishing they jumped at a chance to take over the HQ. They came to the lab to nab you as evidence and to 'rescue' Roy."

Roy blinked in confusion, looking towards the cockpit. "Wait, what? The hell would they be rescuing ME from?"

"The paper trail that got set up for you with a bit of divine intervention didn't exactly go over well with some people, it seems." replied Jin. "From what I could gather when I tapped their communications, they think you're being coerced into helping the Operatives after they spent a year tormenting you..."

"Oh that's just great... So when we're done punching some monster in the teeth and getting everyone back, we gotta go through bureaucracy hell."

The former Strega member laughed darkly. "Gets worse – they think the hijacking was a set-up."

"What!?" exclaimed Labrys.

Koromaru let out a whine, drawing the silver haired girl's attention.

"Huh...? Why's there a lil' guy like him here?"

Ken laughed. "Don't let his size fool you. Koromaru can put up a fight as well as anyone else here."

Labrys stared at the dog for a moment, a short laugh escaping her. "...Huh... The profile I have says he's got Cerberus..." She gingerly reached over and patted the dog on the head. "Pretty good thing to have somethin' like that backin' ya up."

Koromaru barked happily, his tail wagging at the praise.

"So where we goin' now, anyway?" Labrys asked, looking towards her sister. "We're going to look for Mitsuru-san and them, right?"

Metis nodded. "Of course. The Shadow reading they were on the trail of was in Inaba."

"I'm absolutely calling in the cavalry once we get there." said Roy, taking a seat next to Yukari. "These clowns get no mercy."

"Speaking of cavalry, Yukari-san, have you been able to make contact with Iori-san?"

The archer gasped, quickly fishing her phone out of her costume. "I completely forgot! Roy, you call Hamuko!"

"Yeah yeah, can do!"

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SOMEONE KIDNAPPED MITSURU!?"

 _["Please don't yell into the phone Shinji, I like being able to hear."]_

"And so do I!" Hamuko pouted, elbowing her boyfriend. "But what's all this about Senpai getting kidnapped?"

Shinjiro pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning against the wall. "Just. Take it from the top, Roy. And slowly please."

Roy sighed over the line. _["Shadow Ops stuff was happening, we found a sister of Aigis and Metis who'd been in storage, rescued her from kidnappers, then when it looked like the guys who took Labrys wanted to start round two, Mitsuru grabbed most of the Ops and now the car she, Ryoji, Fuuka, Aki, and Aigis were in has just disappeared and them along with it."]_

"...Okay, and you weren't along for that ride because...?"

 _["Look. I'm already furious and if it was any other circumstance then half of our friends going missing, I wouldn't be calling to ask you to help with this."]_

Shinjiro stared at the opposite side of the hall in his grandfather's house as he processed that statement. Roy was an odd duck, sure, but it was rare to hear him at what sounded like his limit. The last time he could recall that was the final venture through Tartarus.

"...So where did they disappear at?"

 _["Inaba Pass a few hours ago. Even in a helicopter, it's gonna take us some time to get all the way out there from Iwatodai."]_

Shinjiro bobbed his head. "...They were headed to Inaba? Why?"

 _["Another long story, important part is a huge shadow reading is what sent Mitsuru's team out that way. And trust me, we've got EVERYONE on this. Yukari's sitting next to me trying to dial Junpei and Chidori, Ken and Koro are talking with Metis, and sounds like Labrys is talking to Jin up near the cockpit."]_

"...All hands on deck, huh?" he hummed, looking at Hamuko. "You down to bust some heads and save our pals? Sounds like Mitsuru got herself into some trouble and now Roy's calling in the cavalry."

"Does Daichi have a shovel we can borrow? We're gonna wanna hide the bodies..."

Shinjiro shook his head. "Alright, Hamuko and I will be there. We got a meeting point?"

 _["Thanks man, and no meeting point yet... Where are you, anyways?"]_

"Up at Daichi's place, about a half hour walk out from Inaba unless we can catch a bus near the Amagi Inn."

Roy hummed. _["...Oddly convenient, but at this point I'll take it."]_

"You okay? I know you said you were pissed, but... You're not sounding too hot."

 _["...Been better. Hoping getting back to vacation after this gets sorted out helps."]_

Shinjiro glanced in Hamuko's direction, watching her walk off while asking loudly about a spare shovel.

"Probably will. If need be, you can count on the old Plan B."

An exceptionally tired chuckle came over the line. _["I appreciate it. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to join Yukari in yelling at Junpei."]_

"Alright. If all else fails, I'll meet you guys at the shopping district."

 _["Gotcha. Later, Shinji."]_

The dark haired persona user sighed, hanging up his phone. He started down the hall, watching Hamuko dart off while his grandfather turned towards him.

"Has something happened?" asked the elder Aragaki.

"You ever have a conversation that makes you feel like your day just got a whole hell of a lot longer?" Shinjiro inquired. "Because that's what this feels like right now..."

* * *

Roy leaned back in his seat with a heavy sigh. "Good news, Shinji and Hamuko are on the outskirts of Inaba and they'll meet us in the Shopping District."

"Why are...?" Ken began, trailing off a moment later. "...Oh yeah, he said he was going to visit his grandfather for Golden Week..."

"Speaking of relatives, you told your dad you're out here?"

Ken nodded. "Yeah. Told me to bust some heads and call him once it's dealt with."

"Okay good..." Roy looked at Yukari. "Any luck with Da Man?"

She sighed, shaking her head. "No..."

"Damn it Junpei, why you gotta be like this right now..." grumbled the redhead, looking through his phone's contacts. "...You keep trying him, I'll dial Chidori." He looked over towards the cockpit. "Kikuno, you still got that copy of my Journal?"

"I already handed it to Labrys-san."

"Nice, what about gear for Yukari, Ken, and Koro? I didn't have time to grab most of my stash."

The helicopter shifted slightly as it turned. "Under Ken-san's seat. There should be equipment for you and Metis as well if you have need of it."

"Double nice, thanks. Why we turning, by the way?"

"We need to refuel, and we're right above the last known location of Lady Mitsuru's limousine."

Roy immediately put his phone away, rising from his seat. "See anything?"

"Smashed guardrail down there, for starters." Jin reported as he looked out the front of the helicopter. "And Morpheus isn't getting a read on anyone who's supposed to be in that car..."

"Well, looks like we get to do a bit of leg work..." the redhead looked over his shoulder. "Koromaru, you up to sniff out a trail?"

A short bark was the shiba's reply.

"Nice, let's get to it once we touch down."

* * *

The group spent nearly an hour checking the area, and all they had to show for it was the twisted remains of the limo, the miraculously unconscious and heavily injured driver, and no sign of where anyone else in the car went. The majority of the wait was for an ambulance from a Kirijo Group owned hospital to arrive, so as to avoid having to explain things to ordinary people and vastly reduce the risk of Public Safety taking him into their custody. Once the ambulance left, they loaded back into the helicopter and took off. Aside from Yukari's attempts to call Junpei, the chopper was quiet. When she finally hung up, she jammed her phone into one of the belt pouches on her costume.

"Damn!"

"What's wrong?" asked Roy, looking back from the front of the helicopter.

"I finally got in touch with Junpei, but his phone was almost dead so I had to make it short..." reported the archer. "He and Chidori are both already out at Yasoinaba Station for some reason, so I told them to wait for us there. It's a safe bet at this point we'll find Mitsuru and the others out in Inaba..."

Metis crossed her arms, a confused look on her face. "What would those two have to do out here? Doesn't Junpei coach a little league team in the afternoon?"

"Guess we'll have to ask him once this is over, but knowing my best pal, we're more likely to get a straight answer out of Chidori..." Roy noted, a wry grin on his face.

"It's getting close to midnight..." Ken noted, looking at the Evoker watch on his wrist before returning his focus to the summary of Labrys' abduction and subsequent rescue. "...What do you think our culprit intends to accomplish by kidnapping our friends?"

Labrys shrugged. "Hard to say..."

A sudden flicker on a monitor in the helicopter drew everyone's attention, the sound of a television set tuning itself filling the air. Unbeknownst to the Shadow Operatives, however, they were not alone in receiving this transmission. Every turned off TV in Inaba was lighting up for the broadcast.

 _["The strong win, while the weak disappear... Tonight, we will witness the hottest battles in all history."]_ Began an announcer, a camera panning around a fighting ring in a massive stadium packed with spectators. _["The goddess of victory is waiting to descend upon the ring!"]_

Roy's eyes went wide in shock and fury. "I swear to god, if this is what I think it is-"

 _["P-1 Fans... Are you ready!?"]_

"-I'M GOING TO RIP THIS FUCKER IN HALF"

The camera on the screen zoomed in on what the redhead immediately knew were fakes of both Teddie and Rise – the former most obviously the good 'General' guise that Labrys' Shadow had employed for a time.

 _["ARE YOU READY!?"]_ the announcer asked again.

 _["Time to let loose..."]_ Began the General, raising his cane. _["An all-out war!"]_

Roy's entire body trembled with fury as images of his abducted friends, himself, Labrys, Metis, and the Investigation Team flashed across the screen. The Announcer's proclamations of world-shattering combat, legendary fighters, and dreams of victory were lost on him entirely. However, his attention shifted as a familiar feeling crept over his body

"Hey, was that the Midnight Channel thing you were talking about!?" Yukari asked. "That was those Investigation Team guys, right? It showed Mitsuru-senpai and the others, too!"

"Uh, I think there's something else to be worried about..." Metis noted, looking out one of the windows on the helicopter. "Why is the sky blood red?"

 _["Yoohoo~! Have you been well, Labby-chan~?"]_

All eyes turned back towards the monitor, a familiar impostor grinning on the screen.

"General Teddie!?" Labrys sputtered. "B-But I thought...!"

The General laughed. _["There's no way I'd go down so easily! I mean, the P-1 without me is like a tuna sandwich without tuna!"]_

"H-He can hear us!? How's that even possible!?"

Ken glared at the screen. "General Teddie, where did you take Mitsuru-san and the others? If you don't give us a good answer, you're gonna pay!"

A scoff prefaced the bear's reply. _["It's past your bedtime, cubby! If you're gonna keep giving me lip, I'm not gonna explain anything!"]_

"Explain?"

 _["That's right~! All of you are bear-y important guest stars in the P-1 Climax, after all! So you'll participate, of course... right?"]_

"Don't act like you intend to give us a choice in the matter." Metis snapped. "We're not that stupid."

General Teddie grinned. _["Clever girl! If you value the lives of the hostages, you don't have any choice but to participate!"]_ A laugh escaped the impostor. _["The P-1 Climax... It's the end of the world, one-on-one death match that's worthy of the name 'Climax'! And best of all, if you don't win the one-on-one tournament to finish within the hour, the world will end! No punches-"]_

One of the Helicopter's side doors suddenly flew open as Roy glared bloody murder right at the screen.

"Fuck you." He snarled, a feral rage in his eyes. "Fuck you, your tournament, and your plans. I'm going to find you, and I'm going to fucking kill you."

 _["Oho? Threatening-"]_

"Not a threat." Roy snapped, cutting off the General again. "A **promise**. See ya soon, lunch meat."

"Roy, wait! What are-!?"

Yukari's question abruptly stopped as she watched the redhead leap out of the helicopter, a wreath of blue flame around him as he went. She darted to the door, looking down to see Roy headed down to Inaba on the shoulder of Kwaku Anansi.

"...Yukari-san?"

The archer looked over her shoulder at Ken. "...Yeah?"

"Did... that remind you of Hamuko-san, too...?" asked the younger Persona user, the vivid image of Hamuko's rampage on October Fourth in his mind.

 _["Well well, good to know there's ONE eager competitor among you!"]_ laughed the General. _["As for the rest of you... this is a no-fly zone! We don't have any room in the parking lot for that thing, so you'd better start walking to the battleground! As a little incentive... Bearsona! Kintoki-douji... Throw 'em a Tomahawk!"]_

The transmission suddenly cuts off, and several alarms ring out from the front of the helicopter.

"What the...!?" Jin suddenly braced himself in his seat. "Kikuno, there's a missile coming towards us!"

"I see it! Evasive maneuvers, brace yourselves!"

* * *

The Norimoto Household was in an uproar from the moment the Midnight Channel ended. Dojima had been visiting with his daughter, and shortly before the channel began, Marie had barged into the home. The entire living room was covered in a soft, silvery blue light that reached all the way to the walls and stairwell. Nanako was clinging to her father, terror in her eyes.

"Dad... what's happening!?"

"I don't... I don't know!" answered Ryotaro, turning towards the girl in the center of the living room. "What are you doing!?"

"Ngh...! Trying to help!" replied the demi-goddess, doing her best to keep the barrier she was projecting up. "I can't cover all of Inaba, but I can at least keep an eye on Rusei's house...!"

Hayate Norimoto stared out the back door, fear in his eyes.

"This... This is the Dark Hour!" he exclaimed. "That shouldn't be possible...!"

Rusei hurried over, looking the door as well. "There's red fog as well-" his attention shifted as an explosion lit up the night sky. "Look, over there!"

What appeared to be a firework had detonated, a giant, taunting image of General Teddie sticking out his tongue dancing in the air for a short time before fizzling away.

"Rusei, I thought you said you dealt with that fake bear!"

"I thought we did, Mother..." said Rusei, turning back towards Marie. "How long do you think you can hold out here?"

"As long as I stay put? All night. I can't move or do anything to help fight..." reported the former Velvet Attendant. "But I can for sure keep that fog out!"

Dojima ran a hand through his hair. "Why keep it out?"

"It's... It's probably keeping Nanako safe."

The detective's eyes immediately locked onto his brother in law.

"Unless Nanako has the potential to use a Persona, she shouldn't be able to perceive it like this." stated Hayate. "She'd be locked in a coffin. Safe, but completely immobile..."

The little girl hugged her father's leg tighter.

"It's alright, just stay in Marie-san's barrier and you'll be safe..." said Rusei, a reassuring smile on his face before he turned his attention back to Marie. "If need be, can those of us with a Persona step out?"

The demi-goddess nodded. "Yeah... It's only rejecting the influence of that red fog. You should be fine... I think."

"Rusei."

The Wild Card turned towards his parents.

"You planning on going to do something about this, aren't you?" asked Sayaka, a knowing look in her eyes.

"I have the capacity to do something, so yes I fully intend to." he replied, no hesitation in his voice. "You heard the general – he has hostages. It's not that I doubt the abilities of Roy and his companions, I just..."

"Feel like he could use a hand regardless." sighed Hayate, running a hand through his hair. "...Go. Ryotaro and I can bunker up and keep things safe here."

At the mention of her father, Nanako lifted her head.

"Are there bad guys out there, dad?" she asked.

"Sounds like it..." he answered. "Don't worry, I won't let them get you."

She smiled, but shook her head.

"If there's bad guys, you have to go catch 'em!" Nanako stated. "It's your job! I don't want you to get in trouble for not catching the bad guys..."

The Norimotos all collectively chuckled at the young girl's statement.

"She's got you there, Ryotaro." noted Hayate, flexing his arms. "Don't worry. I'll lock all the doors once you two get out there. No Shadows will be getting in my house if I have anything to say about it."

Sayaka looked at her husband with mild concern. "But... honey, your Persona..."

"...Right."

"What about his? Can he not use it?"

Hayate rubbed his neck uneasily. "No, it's just..." he paused, then shook his head. "Don't worry about it. You two might wanna hurry – the 'Hour' part of the name's pretty literal with this."

"And that fog is making my skin crawl just looking at it." said Marie, having seated herself on the floor while still maintaining the barrier.

Both Rusei and Ryotaro nodded, the former heading up towards his room to retrieve his equipment.

"If we find Kujikawa, I'll ask her to get in contact with you two. Let you know we're okay." said the detective.

"Right. Just be careful; There's no telling what caused this or what kind of Shadows might be out there."

Ryotaro nodded, testing to see if he still recalled how to summon Izanagi's card. He smiled as it heeded his call, but dismissed it rather than fully evoke the Persona. "I will. I got an old pro watching my back, after all."

* * *

"... Hey, Chidori?"

"Yes, Junpei?"

"Does this look like the Dark Hour to you...?"

"Oh... good. You noticed that too..." remarked the artist, a small scowl on her face. "I think things are a lot more complicated then just Mitsuru-san being kidnapped..."

Junpei let out a groan, hanging his head. "Man.. I'm already confused as hell. Why they gotta keep piling the bad on top of it!?"

* * *

Hamuko gripped the haft of her naginata tighter, looking back the way she and Shinjiro had come.

"Shinji..."

"Yeah, I noticed." he reported, both hands on his axe. His eyes scanned the blood red fog, the surreal stillness of the night putting him on edge. "We should hustle. No point in..." he paused, lifting his gaze. "...Hamuko."

"What?" she asked, turning around. It didn't take her long to see what Shinjiro had seen.

A massive, looming tower on the horizon. One than bent and twisted at angles that should've been impossible for it to remain structurally sound.

"...Is that... Tartarus!?"

* * *

"This... this is beyond bad...!" Yosuke stammered, standing in front of his home. "What the hell is happening to Inaba!?"

* * *

A heavy, drawn out sigh fills the night air. A man is seated on a building, one leg hanging over the side limply. His disheveled hair and unkempt suit give him a rather unimpressive appearance, but pure disdain fills his eyes as he gazes through the red fog. His fingers tap against the grip of the pistol in his hand a few times before he grips it tightly and stands up, catching sight of something flying through the air after a huge firework went off.

"Guess that clown's show has started..." Tohru Adachi remarked aloud, sounding entirely disinterested. "Man, what a pain in my ass... Can't a convicted felon stew in his prison cell in peace anymore?"

* * *

 **Author Notes -** Happy April Fool's day, have a bad time in progress! Who's having a bad time? Why, the answer is simple! YES! :D


	6. Unavoidable Battle

Pre-Chapter Review Answer Corner GO!

 **Delta XIII** \- No, the 'traitorous' Public Safety thing is actually a part of Ultimax's plot normally.

And now, on with the chapter!

* * *

Footfalls echoed through the otherwise still air, Chie sprinting down the street as fast as her legs could carry her. On reflex, she'd put on her TV world glasses only to find no change in visibility through the red fog. Panic was racing through her mind, trying to process what was happening. The Midnight Channel was back again despite the complete lack of rain, and her phone wasn't working at all so she couldn't call anyone. On top of all that, her parents also completely disappeared along with her dog.

-Find the others... that's a good start, right?- she thought, rounding a corner as she pressed onward. -If I'm seeing this, they probably did too... No way they're still at home. So... Next best place would be...- her eyes lit up. "Junes!"

"Not a bad line of thought."

Chie almost tripped over her own feet at the sudden voice, coming to a sudden stop and looking around. She quickly spotted an unfamiliar man with dark skin and a wide brimmed hat leaning against a nearby fence.

"Who're you...?"

The man chuckled, standing up and leaning on a cane.

"Just a stranger doing a favor for an old friend." he replied, his voice both deep and smooth at the same time. "Sorry for the marks on the pages, but sometimes stories just get so interesting and you don't have a bookmark on hand..."

The martial artist blinked in confusion. The man obviously wasn't speaking Japanese, or even English as far as she could tell, but somehow she could perfectly understand what he was saying. It was quite surreal.

"Pages...?" she asked.

A smile curled onto the stranger's face, tapping his cane against a telephone pole nearby. An emblem that resembled a spider was faintly glowing on its surface.

"Just something to mark a safe path." he said, tipping his hat. "But neither of us have time to waste, and I have a red Fool to keep track of. Farewell, young lady!"

As he walked away, Chie tried to rush over to him... only to watch the man completely disappear as he walked behind the telephone pole. She looked around in confusion for a few moments, then shook her head.

-There's all kinds of yokai in town, maybe that's just one of 'em...- she thought, continuing down the street. -Gotta find the others and sort this out!-

While Chie focused on her destination, two other figures watched from atop a nearby house.

" **Heh, that's the one you're based on? Seems like a space cadet."**

" **Totally is, real boring."**

The taller person laughed. **"Well, gotta be headed somewhere. Think I'll tail her and have a little fun once she bumps into someone else or I just get bored of following."**

" **Heheh, suit yourself. I can already think of more interesting prey than her..."**

* * *

"Did you really see Ikutsuki!?" Yukari asked, glancing up as Kikuno's helicopter flew away, having dropped them off atop the local Junes before attempting to get out of missile range.

"I can't forget that face, not after everything that happened." Ken stated, absolute certainty in his voice. "But that just brings up other problems... especially because we know he died."

Labrys cast her gaze back in the direction where Roy had exited the helicopter, a nervous expression on her face. "...Is he gonna to be okay if we just let him run off alone-"

 _+Good news and bad news.+_ began Jin's voice, faintly echoing in the minds of the five persona users. _+Good news, is I can tell where Fortune is. Bad news, he's not responding when I try to get his attention.+_

Koromaru whined, stepping up beside Labrys and facing the same direction she was.

"...Yeah, I'm worried about him too." said Ken.

"Shirato-san, can you detect anyone else?" asked Metis. "Norimoto-san's group had at least eight persona users in it, counting him."

There was a pause before Jin responded. _+...I can, but apart from you guys and the giant neon lights that are Fortune and presumably Norimoto, I can't quite pick out who is... No, wait. That one's Chidori, meaning the one next to her is Iori. She's too far for me to contact though, Morpheus isn't quite as good as Juno... being airborne isn't exactly helping either.+_

Yukari bit her lip. "...Think you can get me headed towards Junpei and Chidori?"

 _+Easy enough, this town isn't as complicated as Iwatodai is. What about the red idiot, though?+_

Koromaru let out a quick bark, then took a few steps in the direction Roy had presumably gone and barked again.

 _+...Translation?+_

"He's sayin' he can sniff out Roy." Labrys reported. "But what about that Ikutsuki guy you guys think is a fake?"

"You and I can handle that." answered Metis. "If even if he's just a fake, he could lead us right to whoever kidnapped our sister."

Yukari nodded. "Plus splitting up lets us get around quicker, and we don't have a lot of time..." she paused, looking in the direction of the replica Tartarus. "...Wait. If that's..." She turned back towards the mechanical sisters. "You two should head towards that Tower. Mitsuru and the others could be there, and if it's anything like Tartarus, that's where the one behind this is gonna kick their plan into motion!"

"Most likely." Ken agreed. "And if Roy isn't already headed there by the time Koromaru and I find him, we can make our way there."

 _+Apologies in advance if I dip in and out of range, Kikuno-san is planning on skirting the edge of the town as long as possible.+_

"Stayin' movin' is probably the best idea, plus if we can get at that General, we can keep him from shootin' at ya."

 _+Exactly. Now you guys better get moving, we've got an hour tops to sort this out.+_

"Right, be careful everyone!"

* * *

Heavy footfalls echoed as Roy sprinted down the street, a furious scowl on his face. His current priority was finding his friends, and to that end he was certain his best chance would be to enlist the help of Rise Kujikawa. It wasn't the most thought out of plans, but in his current state he wasn't willing to think of a better one. Of course, even that tentative plan got derailed when he found something in his path. Something blue and fuzzy.

"YOU THERE. BEAR!" Roy shouted, slowing to a stop. "Get that sniffer working, I need to find Kujikawa thirty minutes ago."

Teddie slowly turned, expression flat. Instantly, the redhead shifted his stance when he saw the bear's face.

The screaming golden eyes didn't exactly inspire a lot of confidence.

" **I do not answer to you... though I admit, I had expected to find the worthless one first..."** remarked 'Teddie'. **"I suppose I shall have to make do."**

"How the hell are you here!?" Roy demanded. "Could've sworn Teddie sorted you out ages ago..."

Shadow Teddie chuckled. **"The worthless bear did indeed, but I am no fragment of his mind. My purpose is conflict, I have no interest in games to break spirits."** Insanity flared in its eyes. **"I need only rend flesh from bone, and I shall begin with YOURS!"** It raised one of its stumpy arms. **"BRING ON THE RING!"**

Four posts suddenly fell from the sky, a familiar field of energy crackling between them. Roy looked between them in shock, but soon his fury returned as he cast his gaze back towards the Shadow.

"Oh, I so don't have time for you..." he snarled, blue flame rising up around him.

" **You have no choice. You cannot leave until-"** The bear was interrupted by Kwaku Anansi exploding forward at the speed of a runaway train, grasping its form and pinning the Shadow to the far wall of the ring. It struggled against the Persona's grip, but to no avail.

"Now. Where's your boss?" inquired the redhead as he approached, venom dripping from his tone. "I presume you work for the General."

Shadow Teddie chuckled darkly, even as it continued trying to break free. **"Why should I tell you any-?"**

The bear's words became horrific, warped screeches of agony as its entire body was engulfed in crimson flame. Seconds passed before the creature began to melt into black sludge and mist, splattering on the ground at Roy's feet as the ring disappeared. A jolt of lethargy shot through the redhead's body, distracting him for a moment as small fragments of light seemed to trail off from his Persona before it vanished. He shook off the strange feeling, lifting his head and finally catching sight of the tower in the distance.

"You've got to be..." he snarled. "Great. Kidnapping, fakes, AND Tartarus! FANTASTIC! Shit today just keeps getting **BETTER!** "

Roy started in the direction of the tower, unaware of a sigil resembling a spider on a wall along the path he took.

* * *

Hamuko groaned as she and Shinjiro came to a stop, now having passed the same bus stop sign for the third time.

"What kind of crap is this!?" she exclaimed angrily. "It's turned this whole town into a maze!"

"I was just thinking the same thing..." grumbled Shinjiro. "I don't have the best recollection of the town, but there's no way we should be coming back to the same damn spot like this..."

The brunette looked around, tapping her foot as she tried to see if she could spot anything. Her unfamiliarity with the town and frustration would have made that a futile effort in most other circumstances, but there was a force working in the favor of the Shadow Operatives just as much as there was one working against them. Hamuko took notice, approaching the bus stop sign and staring at a curious mark on the back of it.

"...Hamuko? You okay?"

"Shinji... do you see this?" she gestured at a stylized image of a spider on the sign. "Cuz it looks kinda like the one that's on the arm of Roy's persona..."

An argument about the impossibility of that being the case almost escaped Shinjiro as he approached, but once he saw the mark in question he stared silently for a moment. His gaze then drifted in the direction the 'head' of the spider mark was facing, and soon he noticed another of the marks upon a power pole.

He nudged his girlfriend before indicating the mark. "I think we got a trail to follow..."

"Looks like we do, but... who put it there? There's no way Roy would've come all this way and not waited for us..."

"No time to wonder, if it gets us where we need to go we can sort it out after we stop whatever made this Dark Hour rerun."

Hamuko nodded, following Shinjiro as he began hustling down the street. "Good point. Just gotta hope it's not leading us to a trap..."

The taller persona user simply grunted in agreement, keeping his eye out for more of the marks. By some miracle, the emblems did seem to be leading them to where they wanted to go, though sounds began to echo through the otherwise quiet night air. Thunder and explosions in particular, flashes of light catching their attention for split seconds. Shadows they assumed, as there was no reason why the Dark Hour wouldn't return without its usual denizens. They took the noise as a sign others were trying to handle the situation as they pressed onward, until a pair of seemingly familiar faces barred their way.

"...Iori?"

'Junpei' lifted his cap, screaming yellow eyes taking in the sight of the two SEES veterans as a wicked grin curled upon his face.

" **Heh, we hit it big!"** he laughed, resting the red baseball bat he carried on one shoulder. **"Which one you want?"**

The other figure, clearly not Chidori even if she resembled the artist, tapped her chin for a moment, then shrugged. **"I'll deal with the straggler."** she rose from her seat, producing a chained hatchet from behind her back. **"No need for me to be picky about it..."**

"Junpei, what the hell are you talking about?"

" **Nothing either of you need to worry your empty little heads over~!"** said 'Junpei' with a sing-song tone. **"Just put up a fight! Make me work for the kill, I don't want this to be boring! BRING ON THE RING!"**

Multiple pillars suddenly slammed into the ground, walls of light forming between them a moment later and cutting Shinjiro and Hamuko off from each other.

"What the hell!?"

" **Two men enter, one man leaves!"** Shadow Junpei declared as he twirled his bat in his hand a few times. **"Or well, two women in their case, but semantics!"**

Hamuko whirled around, seeing she was now trapped in another 'arena' with Shadow Chidori.

" **I wonder how long you'll last..."** noted the imitator, swinging her weapon back and forth as she strode forward.

"...Shinji."

He turned his head slightly. "Yeah?"

"I dunno about you, but I'm pretty sure these aren't Chidori and Junpei."

"What was the first hint, the funky voices, the yellow eyes, or the deathmatch cages?"

She laughed. "The first two honestly, but if they're not the real deal... I dunno about you, but I'm just gonna cut loose."

"...They are kinda in the way."

The doppelganger of Junpei laughed. **"Only 'kinda'? Wow, big talk for someone like-"**

Its words died as it was forced to dive out of the way of a sudden lunge from Vaisravana, which even seemed to catch Shinjiro off guard – he'd only just grasped his evoker, not actually used it.

"Well. That's... a good thing to know."

A flare of blue erupted around Hamuko, Usas now looming behind her.

"Huh... so that's what it's like to summon how Roy does." remarked the pink haired persona user, slipping her headphones over her ears. "That should make this quicker..."

* * *

Even accounting for the fact he'd quite literally used a TV set to access another dimension, the sights Ryotaro Dojima was getting this night were easily the strangest and most disturbing things he'd ever encountered. The red fog and sky were one thing, but the puddles of blood and complete lack of anything living besides himself and his nephew made it so much more unnerving. Once what sounded primarily like distant claps of thunder began to echo through the air, both the Persona users began running faster.

"You're aiming for Kujikawa's place first, right?" asked the Detective.

Rusei nodded as the two of them rounded a corner. "That tower in the distance doesn't inspire confidence, but having her assistance means we'd be able to coordinate with every Persona User in town, and I doubt Roy wouldn't bring in everyone who wasn't abducted to help with the rescue effort."

"Any of 'em like Kujikawa?"

"Several, according to what he'd been willing to share in the past. Though if the one behind this is who I think it is, they've likely incapacitated at least one of those individuals to make tracking them harder."

Dojima frowned as they started approaching the floodplain. "Who do you think is causing this?"

"The same one who caused the 'Fake Teddie' incident barely a two days ago. They seem somewhat impatient if-"

A scream cut off Rusei's statement, both the Wild Card and his Uncle stopping suddenly to look around.

"That was Rise...!"

A series of pillars suddenly fell from the sky and landed closer to the riverbank, leading both Persona users to rush in that direction. Upon getting a clear view of where they landed, they came to another stop and stared in confused awe. Ryotaro's was due to the fact it looked like his nephew was in the center of a small arena staring down Rise Kujikawa, and for Rusei it was because of the arena itself more than his doppelganger.

To the idol's credit, however, she was brandishing a metal pipe in the face of what by all rights would've appeared to be Rusei's Shadow even after it summoned the arena. The Shadow simply seemed amused by the sight.

" **Do you really think you can best me with just that?"** it asked, scorn dripping from its every word. **"I'd almost be insulted if it wasn't so... entertaining."**

"Big talk for a cheap fake!" Rise retorted, despite the fear welling up in her chest. "I know Senpai faced his Shadow, so there's no way you're part of him!"

The Shadow laughed. **"I do not recall claiming to be such a thing! I merely noted a... flaw, in your strategy to locate your companions."** It unsheathed the sword it carried, tossing the scabbard aside. **"It is your one purpose, and it cannot help you against the likes of me! But please, struggle a bit... it won't be nearly as fun otherwise."**

"RISE!"

Both the Shadow and Rise's heads turned, watching Rusei and Dojima suddenly dart down the hill and towards the ring.

"Senpai!"

" **Oh good, more lambs to the slaughter!"** laughed Shadow Rusei. **"I will get to you both after I have finished with the celebrity..."** A psychotic grin curled onto its face. **"Let her screams haunt you till your last breath."**

"Persona!"

The shot from Izanagi's rifle echoed through the night air, but the blast itself did nothing to phase the walls of the arena.

"The hell...!?"

"Damn it, they're just as strong as the other ones...!" Rusei's eyes went wide. "Wait, if they're... then that would mean...!"

Another bought of laughter bubbled out of Rusei's doppelganger. **"As if they would be any different! The only way out is to win, and this little star is about to be-!"**

A fairly sizable rock hit the side of the Shadow's head, causing it to flinch in pain before glaring at the one who threw it; the very idol he had been taunting.

"I'm not just some damsel who needs saving all the time!" she snapped, fury in her eyes. "And I'm not letting you talk down to me with a face that isn't even yours!"

" **...Very well."** The shadow snarled, dark red flame curling up around its feet before a replica of Rusei's Tsukuyomi appeared. **"THEN PERISH!"**

The Moon God rushed directly towards the idol, only to be intercepted by Kouzeon and repelled by a barrier of interlocked hexagons. The false persona leapt back, the Shadow who called it forth staring on in confusion as Kouzeon's form began to shift.

The telescope that covered its head began to fold itself down till it resembled more of an odd space helmet, long red hair spilling out from under its sides. The 'planets' that orbited around her now floated in a circle behind her back, joined by four additional orbs sporting small antennae that had detached themselves from her shoulders and hips. The visor that it had previously held over Rise's eyes now floated above its head like a crown, its multiple arms seemingly directing the satellites it now possessed.

" **What in the...!?"**

"If you wanna hurt my friends, you're gonna have to go through me first!" Rise shouted, a low hum beginning to fill the air. "GO, KOUZEON!"

A massive blast of sound shattered the relative silence of the night like a clap of thunder. Shadow Rusei slammed into the far wall of the arena it had created from the force, while both the onlookers covered their ears.

"That's... certainly new..." Rusei remarked, slowly lowering his hands.

" **Ngh...! I wasn't told about that!"** snapped the Shadow as it angrily stood back up. **"Since when could you fight!?"**

Rise's response was to lash out with her Persona once more, thin beams of light lancing out from the antenna satellites towards Shadow Rusei. It darted out of the way, unleashing Tsukuyomi once again and forcing Kouzeon to block rather than attack.

"My manager always said I could do whatever I put my mind to! Guess that includes kicking the snot out of monsters!"

Kouzeon once more repelled the Tsukuyomi, this time immediately following up with a combination of light beams and blasts of sound akin to sharp cords of music. The attacks tore through parts of the false persona's arm and the Shadow's leg, a grunt of pain escaping it before it opted to rush in to attack the idol itself. Kouzeon's satellites were faster, a wall forming between the Shadow's blade and Rise. Before it could make a second strike, a hand grasped the back of its neck and threw it a fair distance away with Rise's persona fading a moment after giving its summoner some breathing room.

" **Damn it... This wasn't supposed to happen!"** shouted Shadow Rusei. **"You were just supposed to be dealt with quickly!"**

Rusei himself scoffed. "If you thought you could beat someone whose persona can predict your every move, you're certainly not a particularly good copy of me."

That statement hit the Shadow like a ton of bricks as it then noticed the faint green light washing over itself, eyes darting towards Rise a moment later as the idol summoned Kouzeon once more.

"To say nothing of underestimating her tenacity... she DID stand up and use her Persona immediately after awakening it, after all."

The fake Tsukuyomi exploded into existence and launched several blasts of ice towards the idol, only for her persona to shoot the attacks entirely out of the air. Its follow up beam of lightning similarly struck another of Kouzeon's barriers, though the ferocity of the attack seemed to be more than was expected even if it didn't punch through.

"You may want to hurry though, Rise. There's not a lot of time!"

The idol glanced in her senpai's direction and nodded, the planets orbiting behind her Persona all suddenly coming to a stop. Small antennae like the ones on the satellites burst out of each orb, glowing with power in tandem with their larger compatriots. Not one to find out what was about to happen, Shadow Rusei and its replica Tsukuyomi both rushed at their opponent, only to be met by a cascading barrage of energy beams, several tearing its Persona to absolute shreds while the rest decisively crippled the Shadow itself and shattered the weapon it carried.

A weak laugh burbled out of Shadow Rusei's throat as it slumped to its knees.

" **So much... for that..."** it remarked, black ooze leaking out of its wounds. **"Heh... what did I expect... in the end...?"**

The Shadow faded into black mist, small grains of light coming out for a moment before vanishing into the red fog. As they disappeared, the pillars and the walls they generated vanished with the sound of shattering glass, a heavy sigh escaping Rise as both Rusei and Dojima approached.

"Are you alright?"

The idol nodded, leaning on the pipe she still had her hands on. "Yeah... Just need to catch my breath."

"What happened before we got here?"

"I... I was on a train but right as it pulled into the station, all this-" she gestured towards all the strange, twisted structures that were bridging both sides of the Samegawa river. "-started. My phone didn't work, but it felt like the TV world so I tried summoning my Persona... it worked, but then that fake attacked me."

Rusei nodded. "Well, it's lucky Ryotaro and I were already heading to find you. Did you have any luck contacting anyone?"

Rise shook her head. "I didn't have a very good chance to try before that fight broke out. Give me a sec, and I'll try-"

"Well well... What do we have here?"

Rusei and Dojima both whirled around, eyes wide in confusion as an all too familiar face approached them.

Adachi stopped a few feet from the Persona users, a small grin on his face. "Long time no see!"

"The hell are you doing out of your cell!?" Dojima demanded, a hand on his sidearm.

"Well, I had intended on staying well behaved..." remarked the former detective, rubbing his neck as he spoke, seemingly ignoring the battle raging right behind the people he was speaking with. "But, someone begged me help out and well... made the kind of offer that's not so easy to turn down."

Rusei's eyes narrowed slightly"Given the stakes, I imagine you simply enjoy the chance at something other than the monotony of prison."

Adachi smirked. "Bingo, kid! Not like the brat gave me much of a choice anyways, what with the threatening me and all..."

"...'Brat'?" Rise inquired. "I thought you only called us that..."

"Oh whoops, you haven't met that guy yet huh?" said the serial killer with a small chuckle. "Ah well, he doesn't strike me as the type to stay hidden for long. You'll probably run into him sooner or later..."

A distant explosion and a pillar of flame lit up the sky to the left of all the Persona Users. Adachi slowly turned his head towards it, a memory surfacing in his mind.

"...Is that who I think it is?" he asked, a faint nervous edge to his voice.

"Most likely... he has a far greater stake in what's happening."

The former detective nodded slowly as the fire faded from view. "...Well. That's... probably gonna complicate things. Brat better have a plan to deal with him, or his whole operation's gonna go up in smoke."

"Sounds like you don't think this concerns you to me..." noted Rise.

Adachi simply shrugged. "Like I said, that brat asked me to help. Never really gave me a list of shit to do, so it's on him if I don't act according to plan." he glanced at his watch, even though it wasn't working. "Ah, but I gotta get going... need to be somewhere else in short order. But ah, word of advice?"

"Why should we take any from you, let alone let you walk away?" Ryotaro demanded.

"What, you think playing by the rules in THIS is a good idea? C'mon Dojima-san, you're smarter then that." inquired the serial killer. "They're not the rules you all got me to abide by, after all..." A small chuckle escaped Adachi. "Plus it's not like I can get far on foot. I still got business to take care of in town, it just... might not involve you." He waved, taking a few steps backwards. "See ya!"

"Adachi, wait-!"

Dojima's words fell on empty air, as his former partner seemed to simply vanish over the top of the floodplain's bank. Within an instant, Kouzeon reappeared and took on its non-combative form as Rise began scanning the fog.

"...He's gone." she reported. "Well, not completely... I know he's here, but I can't tell where now."

"Can you locate anyone else?"

There was a few moments of silence before Rise spoke up again. "I can tell where all our friends are, but there's more than just us here now... I've got signals I don't really recognize, except for one."

"Fortune?"

"Yes. He's not answering me, though..." A small pause followed. "Nobody is. But there's... huh? One of the signals I'm getting is... flying?"

Rusei and Dojima shared a confused look before turning back to Rise.

"Try contacting them, perhaps?" offered the Wild Card.

"Okay. It couldn't hurt..." she paused, her eyes lighting up. _{Hello? Can you hear me?}_

 _+Kinda. Which one of Norimoto's entourage is this?+_

"I got through!" Rise reported, shifting her focus back to the unfamiliar voice a moment later. _{Rise Kujikawa. Are you one of Roy-san's friends?}_

 _+Coworker technically. Name's Jin, but we don't have a lot of time. What kind of a read do you have for what's going on down there? Report that Fortune gave was you were almost at the same level as Yamagishi.+_

 _{Uh... hold on, I've got Rusei-senpai with me. He might be able to explain better...}_

* * *

"...Uh, guys?"

"I saw it too, Junpei..." said Yukari, staring in the direction the pillar of flame had come from. "That... couldn't have been Roy, could it? He mentioned one of Norimoto's friends had a fire-using Persona..."

Chidori shook her head. "As much as I want to believe that, I know what it feels like when he does things like that... it was definitely Roy."

"Holy shit... Look, I know we gotta stop this whole 'blow up the world' thing but..." Junpei sighed. "I'm sorry, I gotta go make sure my best friend isn't about to burn a whole town to the ground to save our friends."

Yukari chewed her lip for a moment. "...No, I agree with you. He..." she swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "...He was reminding me of Hamuko's rampage when he ran off on his own."

Chidori turned towards the brunette in confusion, which gave way to fear when she saw Junpei's expression.

"What do you MEAN he reminded you of that!?" asked the cap-clad Persona user, terror in his voice. "Why'd you not follow him right away!?"

"I wanted to, but that stupid General Teddie shot a missile at the helicopter!"

"So you did the next best thing and came to get me, since I can track him."

Yukari nodded, starting to take a few steps down the road they were standing on. "Plus, well... having a few more of us around might be able to get him to calm down. There's no telling how long it'll take Ken and Koromaru to find him..."

Junpei nodded, adjusting his hat as he began to follow Yukari. "Chidori, just lead the way. We'll snatch up Roy, then go bust out everyone else!"

 _=Already working on it, just hold onto me.=_ Chidori reported, Hestia floating beside her as she held her boyfriend's arm.

* * *

Ken gasped for breath, looking up at the skyline. That explosion hadn't been far from where he was, but he couldn't get much of a look at it because of the fight he'd been forced into with a copy of himself and Koromaru. The shiba brushed against the brunet's hand, drawing his attention with a small whine.

"Yeah, I saw..." said Ken, patting Koromaru on the head. "C'mon. We've gotta go make sure he's okay..."

Koro let out a short bark, bounding a head a few steps as his companion got back to his feet and followed.

* * *

 **Author Notes -** Writer's block is a bitch, let's just leave it at that... well no, also the resources I have for the Ultimax plot aren't the best so it's really obnoxious to try and keep things in some semblance of order. I'm gonna finish this story one way or another, even if I have to basically wrap it together with duct tape!


End file.
